Curse of the Banshees
by Sheyda
Summary: (Title-changed) AU. GoF. Harry was sent to Azkaban for mass-murder. Now, after defeating Voldemort he returns to Hogwarts and all those who abandoned him. Sorrow can be your downfall or your greatest strength. And banshees are just the beginning.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all related things belong to JK Rowling. Disclaimer applies to all chapters. I am not making any profit out of this except the one to my ego if I get 'rave reviews' and the betterment of my written work if I get criticism. No money to pay lawsuits...yadda, yadda, yadda.

Warning: This is an angsty fic, hence the rating. Does not contain Slash, 'Dark! Harry' or 'Evil! Harry'.

Summary:

This is pretty AU. Starts in GoF at the Third Task. Barty Crouch was never discovered as Mad-Eye and remained under that guise until recently when the Dark Lord's rise to power is almost complete. When Harry was about to portkey out of the cemetery after Voldemort's resurrection, Voldemort couldn't stop him but he managed to cast a very powerful Dark spell on the Triwizard cup. Harry arrived back at Hogwarts and was immediately surrounded by a huge crowd. Someone tried to take the cup out of his hands and that activated the Dark spell. It killed or injured almost a hundred people gathered around that area but left Harry unscathed in the center. Some students, teachers and many spectators died that day. Barty Crouch managed to prove Harry responsible for Cedric's death. The evidence gathered in the investigation all pointed to Harry as the caster of the Dark spell since his wand was brother to Voldemort's. The Death-eaters at the Ministry and biased Ministry workers gave Harry an unfair trial and sentenced him to fourteen years in Azkaban for the mass-murder at Hogwarts. Dumbledore tried to interfere and lighten his sentence but the solid evidence provided by the Death-eaters in disguise had even convinced him of Harry's guilt along with everyone else. In the end no one came to Harry's rescue.

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

Harry Potter, the-damned-boy-who-lived glanced morosely at the bowl of soaked, stale bread that passed for a meal in Azkaban. He was pretty sure his taste buds were all but dead after a year of eating nothing but soggy bread twice a day for so long. He leaned his head against the wall behind him and sucked in his breath as he felt two dementors passing two floors above him.

He began to think he'd sunk into another one of his nightmarish memories as he heard voices. But the coldness receded and the voices became stronger. He raised his head to see two Death-eaters in the customary robes and masks opening the door to his cell. For a moment he thought he had fallen asleep and was having another nightmare, until he was roughly pulled to his feet.

"Are you sure this is the right cell? This doesn't look like Potter" the Death-eater holding Harry's arms asked.

"Check for the scar" the other suggested.

The first one roughly pushed Harry's long, matted hair out of his face. Seeing the lightening bolt shaped scar on his forehead, he nodded to himself and dragged Harry out of the cell, not that Harry had any energy or even the inclination to fight him. He had known this day was coming through his nightly visions of Voldemort.

"What...that IS Potter? Whatever happened to his hair?" the other asked bewilderedly.

"Never mind that. Let's go before the Dark Lord is displeased at the delay."

Harry was pushed into a boat beside a group of other prisoners and immobilized by a body-binding charm before the two Death-eaters began to row towards the opposite shore. As they neared the shore, Harry could see a huge crowd gathered in a clearing among the trees. 'It won't be long now' he thought to himself though he wasn't sure if he felt melancholic or relieved about his impending doom.

The newly freed prisoners jumped out of the boat the moment it reached shore and hurried to Lord Voldemort's side, kissing the hem of his robes and thanking him for their freedom.

Harry was dragged out of the boat and thrown in the center of the crowd. As he raised his head from the ground, he noticed Voldemort flanked by Death-eaters standing in front of him and Dumbledore, Arthur Weasley, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, the minister and many others standing around helplessly surrounded by Death-eaters who were pointing their wands menacingly at them.

"Nott, you _fool_! I told you to bring me Potter. And you brought me some miserable old man. How dare you fail me at such a simple task. _Crucio__! _" Voldemort intoned.

One of the Death-eaters fell writhing to the ground screaming in unbearable pain.

"My Lord, this _is_ Potter. He's got the scar and all" he replied between heaving ragged breaths when the curse was let up.

"What? Have you gone mad? Potter is a boy not an..." Voldemort paused and strode to where Harry was half-lying on the ground. He grabbed Harry's chin roughly and turned his face upwards to look into the emerald eyes before flicking away his hair to see the famous scar. And yes, under the white hair the famous scar was still evident.

"Ah, yes indeed, he is Potter. Finally our hero is here. The Savior of the Light, the boy-who-lived" Voldemort drawled sarcastically.

He turned to look at all the people gathered there. He began strolling around the clearing surrounded by the crowd of people flanked by his Death-eaters at wand-point.

"Look at him. See what you have done to your savior. Abandoned him to Azkaban for something that he didn't do. Who's going to save you now?" he asked them mockingly.

Harry decided he wasn't going to take all this lying down, so he slowly got up to his feet. He seemed to struggle with just that simple task. Voldemort noticed the movement and turned back to him.

"Well, are you going to save them Harry? Are you going to save these ignorant fools who were so quick to get rid of you when they thought they didn't need you? These people who gave you so much grief that it turned all your hair white at such a young age. Do they even deserve to live?" Voldemort asked him with a manic glint in his eyes.

"If you think you can persuade me to join you, let me tell you you're wasting your time" Harry replied in a flat tone.

Voldemort looked momentarily surprised at Harry's lack of emotion. He considered Harry's white hair and thin, malnourished frame for a moment. He decided that whatever that long ago prophecy had said about Potter being his equal couldn't be in terms of his magical powers. Voldemort certainly didn't need a weak, almost dying boy's help to conquer the world. He had already accomplished a great deal on his own in such a short time.

"Well, since you've already made your decision, I don't see any point in your staying ali-"

"You can't kill a defenseless boy. How can you be such a coward?" a young man standing in the crowd cried out interrupting him. He was immediately subjected to the cruciatus by a Death-eater standing nearby.

"Coward? I would be a coward if I killed a defenseless boy? Well we must certainly not let everyone think that. Well then how about another duel? You proved yourself quite capable the last time, Harry Potter." Voldemort looked questioningly at the thin, young wizard.

"You're an idiot, Voldemort. Don't you ever learn anything? Your bloody desire for drama was your downfall the last time. Why don't you just kill me and get it over with?" Harry replied calmly.

There was an unheard gasp from all present at Harry's unconcerned reply. Voldemort's mouth was pressed in a line of anger and his eyes glittered dangerously.

"_Crucio__! _" Voldemort curse hit Harry with the force of Voldemort's anger. Harry dropped to his knees as the waves of pain hit him. However no sound came out of his mouth. He had been subjected to that curse through his visions almost every night for his stay in Azkaban and though the pain never lessened, he had learnt to endure it without screaming.

It was an eternity before Voldemort released the curse. Harry was aware that it was one of the longest times he had been under the curse but he felt a small surge of triumph knowing that Voldemort was left angry and unsatisfied because of not hearing him scream.

"Well if you're finished with the drama, can we get this over with?" Harry asked in an unbelievably serene voice.

"You can't wait to die? Whatever happened to Gryffindor bravery? Aren't you Gryffindors supposed to struggle on with reckless courage till your dying breath. That is what causes your downfall and it is such a pleasure to watch" Voldemort smiled sinisterly as the Death-eaters laughed at Harry trying to get to his feet on wobbly knees and falling down again.

As the Death-eaters continued to laugh and Voldemort twirled his wand glancing around lazily, Harry calmly took a look all around him. His weak stance and wobbly knees seemed to have fooled them all.

"Yes, I suppose you were counting on my Gryffindor recklessness to provide you with some entertainment. Did I mention that the Sorting Hat had wanted to put me in Slytherin?" Harry asked from his place on the ground.

In a flash he was up and grabbing the wand of the Death-eater right behind him and pushing him back, he pointed it straight at Voldemort.

"Too bad for you that Gryffindor courage with Slytherin cunning is a lethal combination. _Avada__ Kedavra!_ " Harry intoned amidst the Death-eaters' dying laughter. The deep-rooted hatred he felt for Voldemort giving his magic the ability to cast the death curse with deadly accuracy without any previous practice.

For a moment everything stood still. Everyone looking at the green light shooting out of the wand and striking Voldemort. Voldemort fell to the ground, his dead eyes reflecting the beginnings of shock. For a moment no one could believe that such a powerful dark lord was dead and the prophecy was fulfilled so quickly in such a simple manner. Then everyone began to move. People in the crowd knocking off the wands pointed by Death-eaters. Aurors taking out their wands and stunning them. Some people just wrestling the Death-eaters to the ground and knocking them unconscious. And some Death-eaters recovering enough to Disapparate out of the area. Harry lowered the wand he was holding but continued to stand there staring at Voldemort's corpse.

Once the Death-eaters had been stunned, the crowd became silent again as they looked at the thin boy with dirty white hair standing in the center. The filthy, ragged coat he was wearing was torn in places and reached to his ankles. All of them felt suffocated as the guilt crushed their hearts. He was staring unblinkingly at the corpse, still completely unemotional.

All of a sudden, Harry sucked in a sharp breath. Dropping the wand he was holding, he began to walk woodenly to a tree close to the shore and leaned against it. It was a few moments later that the others felt the coldness in their bones that signaled the coming of the dementors. They were floating across the murky water, rapidly approaching the shore. Everyone was still rooted to the spot as the dementors took hold of each of the prisoners freed earlier, guiding them back to the boat. One of the dementors approached Harry and pulled him away from the tree. Harry leaned against the dementor and let it lead him to the boat. It was as if a loving parent was leading away his sick child. Harry didn't even glance at the crowd around him, nor did he try to fight the dementor like some of the other prisoners were doing. He was taken to the boat and his wrists were put in the customary black chains attached to the boat.

As the others just stood watching the calm acceptance of the child with horror, one man broke into a run towards the boat. Sirius Black splashed unheedingly into the ice-cold waters to reach his godson's side. He stood there knee deep in water, looking at Harry as the dementors continued to load the prisoners into the boat.

"Harry....I, I'm so sorry. God, how did this happen? How could I.....Harry, please look at me....I...I didn't know..." Sirius' voice cracked with emotion as he gripped the side of the boat.

Harry who had been staring unseeingly at the floor of the boat looked up at Sirius' hand on the boat then at Sirius. Sirius dropped his gaze to the waters when he saw the blank gaze his godson was giving him.

"Harry....I'm sorry I failed you...I....should have known better......Ha-Harry.." he looked up to see Harry leaning in closer to him, tilting his head, raising his hand to his ear causing the chains on his wrist to jangle.

"Can't hear you. You have to speak louder.....parents screaming.." his voice was barely a whisper.

Sirius' face contorted in horror and pain as the meaning of Harry's words sank in. And then before he could move, the boat was moving and Harry dropped his arm and returned his gaze to his feet. The boat sailed away as Sirius just stood there staring after the boy who was his dead best friend's only son. The boy who had saved the world from Voldemort. The boy whose emerald green eyes were so dead.


	2. The Trial

**Chapter 2: The Trial**

Harry Potter leaned against the wall of his cell waiting for the dementor to move away from his cell. He was aware of a digging pain in his back. As he regained control of his limbs, he shrugged out of the huge overcoat that belonged to one of the Azkaban prisoners who was dead. The coat of a corpse was his only protection from the cold of Azkaban. He tentatively touched his back feeling a small piece jutting out and blood trickling slowly. Two of the prisoners sitting behind him in the boat earlier kept hitting him with something sharp. No doubt they were celebrating their new-found freedom. They weren't so jubilant on the journey back to Azkaban, he thought wryly.

Harry slowly moved to a corner of his cell retrieving a small piece of cloth that used to be white and a bowl with jagged edges where the china was broken. After filling the broken bowl with a little of his drinking water he moved back to the slab of stone which was considered the bed. He sat down partially removing his shirt and soaking the small cloth in some water.

Harry was trying to wash the blood off his back but his arm couldn't reach the wound. Every movement sent pain shooting along his spine. Harry was wondering whether the small piece embedded in his back was glass or metal when he caught the sound of footsteps. He put the washcloth down as the door of his cell was opened. He just watched neutrally as Albus Dumbledore entered his cell followed by Arthur Weasley, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black. Harry straightened his shirt, stood up facing the look of intense sadness and remorse of the men.

"What ?" Harry asked in a flat tone when it became apparent that none of them were about to speak.

"Uhh... Harry, we've come to get you. Come along," Dumbledore finally spoke.

Harry stared at him causing him to drop his gaze to the floor. Harry looked at each man in turn and none managed to look him in the eye. The look on Sirius' face was one of pure anguish. Harry picked up his tattered overcoat and slung it over his shoulders.

"I haven't eaten my lunch yet" Harry motioned his head toward the bowl of soggy bread.

"Uhm... you can eat something later" Dumbledore suggested almost timidly.

Harry shrugged and prepared to follow them. As they walked through the dark hall-ways of Azkaban, Harry found himself walking ahead of them rather than behind them. They walked in silence until Harry suddenly stopped sucking in his breath. He half-clutched, half-leaned against the brick wall near him.

"I need a minute." He whispered to the others without looking at them.

Harry began to slide to the floor causing all four men to step forward. They wanted to help him but they were somehow afraid to touch him. The cold feeling that identified dementor swept over them and slowly faded away.

"The dementors probably just passed on the floor above us" Sirius told them as they kept their eyes on Harry.

Slowly Harry dragged in a breath before getting up still holding the wall for support. And then he was walking again. The others followed him without a word. They had almost reached the outer doors when they were met by two stuffy-looking Aurors.

"Harry Potter, you are hereby summoned to your trial that will be held in court shortly" one of the Aurors stated after having cleared his throat.

"Trial? What trial? What are you talking about?" Sirius raised the question.

The two Aurors explained amid protests how Minister Fudge and some members of the Wizengamot thought an investigation was needed since the stories about the events of the day were so varied. Despite all the protestations the two Aurors took Harry with them telling the others to save their arguments and explanations for the court.

Harry was escorted by the Aurors to the courtroom at the Ministry wearing the customary handcuffs all convicts wore. It looked as if most of the wizarding world was there clogging up the corridors and stairways. Harry was mostly oblivious to their staring and speaking to him or about him. The atmosphere there brought the nightmarish memories of his first trial to mind. He was still as alone as he was then but he no longer felt so lost. The crowds and their opinions no longer mattered to him. They could think and say whatever they wanted. He was nothing but juicy gossip to them.

His memories of the trial became even more vivid when he found that the audience of the court-room was pretty much the same. It were also the same judges. Dumbledore and his earlier troop were already seated. The sight of Ron and Hermione's miserable faces among others after so long drowned Harry in his memories. _His best friends! The same ones who were alongside him through all his adventures in their years at Hogwarts. The same ones for whom Harry would have gladly sacrificed his life in the past. The very same ones whose friendship had turned to hatred after the Triwizard Tournament. _Harry had long ago learnt to deal with the suspicion and hatred of some of his schoolmates and expect his best friends' unwavering support and loyalty. He had become dependant on them. He had needed them like never before during that time. And they had said such hurtful things to his face. They had given him some of the worst memories of his life. _Never again! Never again would he put his faith in friends. Never again would he become dependant on others._

Harry was caught in his memories as the trial began. The opposing sides stated their evidence and conclusions. The audience both inside and outside the courtroom made their comments loudly. Harry sat through all this, showing no emotion, his gaze fixed unseeingly on something.

"Mr. Potter...Mr. Potter?" Amelia Bones, one of the judges tried to get his attention.

Harry looked up startled as if he had just remembered where he was. He turned his blank eyes to Mrs. Bones.

"Mr. Potter, did you kill Lord Voldemort today?" she asked causing most of those present to flinch.

"Yes" Harry stated calmly in the hushed silence.

"You know what that means, don't you?" she asked causing Harry to sigh.

"Yes" Harry replied without emotion.

"Seven years in Azkaban for murdering a wizard." He continued when the silence continued.

The silence was deafening. Everyone gaped at the boy sitting there so calmly.

"My sentence was fourteen years originally. Now it will be twenty-one years. How many years have passed since my first sentence?" Harry asked unaware of the blows of pain felt by some in the audience.

Even the judges were shocked at Harry's pronouncement. Had he become so jaded and mistrustful of people that he expected to be sent to prison for ridding them of the evil maniac? The complete lack of emotion in the emerald eyes was agony to those who had once been close to him and half-convinced others of his madness.

"uhhh.....It has been over a year since your imprisonment. In fact it has been almost thirteen months" Mrs. Bones answered.

"One year? _Just_ ONE year has passed?" the first signs of emotion on Harry Potter's face was one of disbelief and then despair.

The uncomfortable silence grew. The lady judge was saying something again but Harry couldn't focus. _Just one year has passed. That means another twenty years in Azkaban for me. Who cares anyway. The way those dementors effect me all day long and the nightmares I get at night will take my sanity before long. _The trial and discussions continued around him but he was lost in thought once again.

"But he still killed Cedric Diggory. Diggory was dead before he got back to Hogwarts" Minister Fudge yelled shaking his fist at one of the other judges.

"He did not. He-who-must-not-be-named was responsible for Diggory's death" the old, bearded wizard replied just as heatedly then flushed as he caught Amos Diggory's eye.

The next instant everyone in the courtroom began bickering about it with their neighbors. The noise continued to escalate as Harry looked around him bemusedly. Their opinion mattered nothing to him. Cedric's death was also one of the worst memories of his life and he had relived it many times thanks to the dementors and his nightmares. At first his death was one of the things that almost pushed Harry to the brink of insanity, but reliving it again and again made him see that he could not have prevented it anymore than he could have prevented his imprisonment. The argument continued until Dumbledore finally suggested that Harry's memories be viewed in the court to decide the matter. The suggestion was discussed and most of the judges agreed and in the end even Fudge had to assent but he demanded that all of Harry's memories concerning Cedric should be viewed since Fudge accused Harry of helping or at least not preventing Cedric's death out of jealousy.

Dumbledore approached Harry and gently asked him whether he would allow the courtroom to view all of his memories concerning Cedric. Some time ago Harry might have refused. He used to be such a private person. But he no longer cared what people thought and he didn't care what they did or saw. He just shrugged at Dumbledore's question. Taking his shrug as consent, Dumbledore pointed his wand to Harry's temple and bellowed the incantation. Something misty began to seep out of Harry's temple and curl into a ball growing larger. As Dumbledore stepped back the ball of mist gathered near the wall of the courtroom and started to expand shaping a huge misty screen. It looked like a cinema screen, Harry thought detachedly. Everyone held their breath as all of Harry's memories that were related to Cedric began to unfold on the screen. They could see and hear everything that Harry experienced.

They watched, Harry first meeting Cedric on the quidditch pitch. The game began in the heavy rain. The dementors gathered on the ground as Harry saw them from his broomstick. The faint screams that became clearer as his mother's pleas for his life as Harry began to fall off his broomstick. Then blankness.

The next memory was that of the Quidditch World Cup, Mr. Diggory bragging about his son. Then it was the announcement of the Champions for the Triwizard Tournament followed by Harry's conversation with him afterwards when he wasn't entirely convinced that Harry hadn't cheated to get his name in the Goblet.

The memories during the tournament continued. The jeers and insults Harry endured from all those who supported Cedric. Seeing the other Champions surrounded by fans and friends who looked at him as if he was a nasty bug. The 'Potter stinks!' pin-badges that the Slytherins wore as Ron just ignored Harry in front of Potions.

All these memories continued to flash and Minister Fudge was looking quite pleased that his accusation of jealousy was being proven right. That smile vanished completely as Harry informed Cedric about the dragons in the First Task.

Then came the memories of asking Cho to the dance and being told that she was going with Cedric. Watching them dance during the Yule Ball and then seeing them together holding hands around the school. The memories of Cedric's help for the Second Task and then the Second Task itself.

Finally, the memories of the Third Task surfaced. Harry rescuing Cedric from Viktor's curse and then again Harry saving Cedric from the overgrown spider ending with both of them arguing that the other should take the cup. Everyone in the courtroom sat in shocked silence seeing the rebirth of Lord Voldemort. They watched as he cursed the Triwizard cup with the curse that killed so many people. They watched as Harry portkeyed back to Hogwarts with Cedric's body fulfilling his final wish. They watched as the touch of a young mediwizard on the cup activated the curse.

And with that final memory the misty screen evaporated. For a while there was complete silence in the courtroom. Everyone was too overcome with emotion to speak properly. Almost everyone was fighting back tears and many failed to hold back the tears. Their hearts wrung in sorrow for the young man who had been through so much in his young life. Even the hardest skeptics could no longer deny how valiant and honorable his actions had been through it all. So many children grew up listening to their parents teach them morals and honor and integrity, yet so many were led astray. And here was an orphan who'd never had anyone to teach him all that but still he was the best among them.

The judges discussed the memories briefly but the verdict was already clear. Minister Fudge reluctantly announced that Harry Potter was cleared of all charges and would receive a million galleons as compensation for his wrongful imprisonment and reward for defeating Voldemort. Harry didn't seem to hear any of it as his gaze was still fixed on the same spot.

When Harry looked up again the judges were shuffling their papers and people were talking. Mrs. Bones approached Harry and smiled tentatively as the judges and the audience began to flow out of the courtroom. She gently retold him the verdict. Harry looked at her in confusion for a minute.

"Oh!" he replied still looking a bit bewildered at the verdict. He looked around and saw the Aurors leaving the room without a glance towards him. He also saw that Dumbledore, McGonagall, Hermione, the Weasleys and the two former Marauders were still there, waiting for him, their tears not dried yet. Harry ignored them and turned back to Mrs. Bones as she explained that the compensation money would be deposited in Gringgots and he could access it soon.

"Okay!" was all he said in return once she was finished. Harry turned and walked out of the courtroom without a backward glance to the people waiting for him.

"Harry.." Hermione's tearful voice halted his steps for a moment but he continued to walk. He did not want to hear anything they had to say. Why should he? He had pleaded and pleaded with them to hear him out when he was accused, but they never listened.

Harry took the lift to the main floor of the Ministry and looked around for a way out. As he was standing there, he was surrounded by a mob of reports rushing at him, asking 'him how he felt' and 'was the compensation enough' and other such questions. He just looked at them tiredly. The look in his eyes shut them up.

"Write whatever you like. After all, you've never cared about the truth. In the end you will all just write whatever people want to read. Why bother asking me at all?" he answered them blandly. For once the reporters were speechless as they watched him walk off.

As he wandered away from the reporters, he came to a set of fireplaces on opposite sides of the walls. He saw an old wizard sitting in a tall stool holding out floo powder. A lady came and showed him a card then took some floo powder and flooed out of the Ministry. Another woman came with two children and handed the wizard a sickle and some knuts and took floo powder for herself and her children before flooing out also. The kindly old wizard looked at Harry and smiled.

"Would you like to go somewhere, son?" he asked gently nudging the bowl of floo powder in his direction.

"I....I don't have any money" Harry answered though he dearly wanted to get away from all the staring he was getting.

"It's okay, son. For this once, it's on me" the old man said, holding out the bowl.

Harry hesitated for a moment then accepted. He flooed to the Leaky Cauldron. His first thought was to get some money and a place to sleep since it was evening already. His stomach growled reminding him that he hadn't had lunch. The thought of never having to eat soggy bread again finally brought the realization. He was free. He would never have to go back to Azkaban. He hadn't lost his sanity. He had defeated Voldemort. Harry could feel a little tickling sensation in his gut. It took him a moment to realize that it was something like relief or happiness. Though he couldn't be sure. Those feelings seemed all but alien to him now.

Harry raised his head to see everyone in the Leaky Cauldron staring at him. They were all looking at pieces of parchment that looked like brochures. They had been passing it around. Harry saw one of those parchment on the bar close to where he stood. There was something written on it.

'Harry Potter was cleared of all charges. Madam Bones explained that he would be receiving one million galleons as compensation.'

As Harry watched, the words vanished and new ones began to appear.

'Harry Potter has just left the Ministry building. He declined to comment when questioned about the trial.'

So the whole world already knew? Good! At least no one would call the aurors on him. His thoughts became grim as he headed for the back door. He would have to walk the whole length of Diagon Alley to reach Gringgots. Diagon Alley had been one of his worst memories too.

FLASHBACK

After the Third Task, when so many people had been killed by the dark curse, Harry had been immediately expelled from Hogwarts. The tracing charms cast by the teachers on the cup had shown traces similar to Harry's wand signature. He had tried to explain about the brother wands and Dumbledore had agreed with him but the teachers were concerned with the other students' safety and demanded that Harry be expelled immediately. They were all gathered there and the angry parents were there too. They had condemned Harry without even hearing what he had to say. He was a danger, they said. He would kill them all if he could, they said. He was on Voldemort's side, they said. They had demanded that Harry's wand be broken right there in front of them. Dumbledore had tried to calm them half-heartedly but the anguish at the death of loved ones made them stubborn and angry. And Harry had to watch with tears in his eyes while two wizards held him tightly by the arms as Dumbledore snapped his precious wand in two.

He had expected to be carted off to some holding cell where he would stay for the duration of his trial, but it turned out that the rickety laws of the wizarding world stated that the accused was free until the verdict had been reached.

McGonagall had led him stiffly to Gryffindor Tower so that he may retrieve his belongings. He had tried to plead tearfully to her but she had not even spared him a glance, told him to be quiet. Harry had gone up to his dorm alone as McGonagall waited in the Common Room amidst the angry and hateful glances that were directed at him. Harry had entered the dorm-room to find a fire burning in the fireplace. His dorm-mates were standing near the fire, their eyes filled with anger and hatred. Harry looked at the fire to see all his belongings being swallowed by the flames.

"NO" he cried as he saw the photo album with his parents' pictures burning in the fire. He had lunged at it, not caring that both his hands were burning. He had tried to rescue it but it was too hot. He couldn't save it. He only managed to snatch out one picture of his parents before it was eaten up by the flames. This picture had also been burnt at the edges on three sides. He had clutched it to his chest as he got up, his eyes filled with pain. His father's invisibility cloak had already turned to ashes. Nothing else was left. Clutching the single photo, he descended to the Common Room.

Harry had been escorted by two angry teachers to the gates of Hogwarts before they were banged shut in his face. He had never felt so alone in his life. Voldemort was back. Cedric was dead. So many other people were dead. And everyone thought he was responsible for all of it. That was the first time Harry wished for death. Harry spent the whole night walking aimlessly feeling numb. In the morning, he was sitting at the far edge of Hogsmeade when two aurors came to get him for the first day of his trails.

At the end of the first day, Harry had gone to Diagon Alley. He wasn't going to give up without a fight even if he had no one on his side. He had had no one on his side all the time before he came to Hogwarts. He needed money, a place to stay, some parchment and quill, a book on the law and other things. He had gone to Gringgots and retrieved money. The goblins were no more nasty than usual. They couldn't care less if he was Harry Potter just as long as he didn't try to rob them.

It was everyone else at Diagon Alley that had given the dementors another weapon to destroy Harry. He had thought that he was used to rejection. After all his relatives considered him a freak, he never had any friends in elementary school, Slytherins hated him since First Year, and the other three Houses had turned against him on different occasions. But it was in Diagon Alley that Harry learned the unforgettable taste of total rejection. It was here that he learned to be bitter. Harry desperately needed things from the shops and he had the money to pay for it but for the first time in his life he was treated like an orphan beggar.

END OF FLASHBACK

Harry halted his thoughts before they went too far. He did not want to remember their cruelty. He had done enough remembering in Azkaban. He did not want to buy anything from Diagon Alley ever again. He was going straight to Gringgots then straight back.

And at just that moment, a wizard opened the passage between Diagon Alley and the Leaky Cauldron. Harry used the opportunity to step into Diagon Alley and headed to Gringgots not looking left or right. The sky became cloudy. The few people who were buying things there, stopped and pointed to him and whispered to each other, but thankfully no one spoke to him.

Harry had no trouble getting money out of Gringgots. He kept some of the galleons but he exchanged the bulk of his withdrawal into muggle money. As he came out, the sky had become stormy. He began to walk quickly towards the Leaky Cauldron. As he passed the shops, he noticed the owners had all come to the entrances of their shops, their tormented expressions and remorseful eyes on Harry.

A strong wind began to blow making him shiver and his ragged overcoat flap all around him. He pulled the coat closer around him. Madam Malkin watched as he passed her shop without so much of a glance at her. Her heart went out to the brave young man who was holding his head high even though his clothes were torn and dirty. She remembered clearly the day during the trial he had come to her shop to get clothes. He didn't have anything except the Hogwarts robes he had been wearing. She had told him just what she thought of him and his money and told him to get out and never come again.

Harry passed Flourish and Blotts, his chin jutting out even further. He hardly blinked even when Mr. Flourish raised his hand as if to say something. But what could he say? He cursed himself a thousand times as he remembered the day over a year ago when Harry had come to his shop in desperate need. Mr. Flourish's youngest son went to Hogwarts and he was one of the victims of the dark curse that Harry had supposedly cast. The loss of his son had made him want to lash out at Harry. He had refused to let Harry buy the quill, parchment and the book on Wizarding Laws. Harry had pleaded and begged. He needed the book for his trial. He wouldn't leave even after being told to get lost. In the end Mr. Flourish had taken him by the collar and shoved him outside. Harry had fallen on his face as the people around him had laughed and insulted him. No one deserved that kind of humiliation.

Harry passed Magical Menagerie which had been bought by Mr. Warsh who also owned Eeylops Owl Emporium. Something caught Harry's eye. Harry turned his head sharply to the owl-perch outside the window to see a white owl with black wings sitting there. For an instant Harry had thought that it was Hedwig. Of course it wasn't Hedwig. Hedwig was dead. For a moment his eyes clouded with pain at the loss of the only friend that had stayed by him when the world had turned against him. Mr. Warsh felt as if a hand was squeezing his heart as he was only too aware of Harry's grief. Mr. Warsh had spent all his life around animals and he knew the value of unquestioning love and loyalty that only an animal could give. He was responsible for that grief.

Harry had bought Hedwig from him. That day when Harry had come to Diagon Alley, he had stood and watched too. It seemed so right that the 'villain' be alone and friendless, insulted and humiliated by all. But then Hedwig had come flying and perched on his shoulder. Harry had looked at Hedwig and smiled even after all he had just endured. Mr. Warsh's blood boiled. Murderers didn't have the right to smile. They should be made as miserable as they had made others. As Harry was passing his shop, he moved in a flash and grabbed Hedwig off his shoulder. Harry had tried to get her back but a couple of youths close by had grabbed him and slammed him into the ground. Mr. Warsh had thought to give the 'murderer' a taste of his own medicine. Harry had struggled and trashed but he couldn't save his owl as her neck was snapped. He had stayed motionless staring horrified as Mr. Warsh threw the dead owl to the ground then trodden on it too.

Mr. Warsh had never regretted anything more than his actions on that day. He watched with silent tears falling from his eyes as the white-haired figure resumed his journey. Something had been making a racket in one of the cages for some time now. Mr. Warsh turned his head distractedly towards the noise. It was the cubs. They were clawing at their cage, clamoring to get out.

Could it be? Did it mean what he thought it meant? The cubs were twins, with pure black fur. They were identical save for the fact that one of them had bright green eyes, and the other had honey-gold eyes. They would grow up to be male Tigercats. Twins were very rare among these magical creatures. And Tigercats chose their master when they were cubs. Mr. Warsh released them from the cage and let them run out of the shop. They had sensed the aura of the human they wished to be with and he prayed with all his heart that it was who he thought.

Harry had managed to walk through Diagon Alley and back. He was almost there now, not much farther. The sky was getting stormy and he needed to get to a hotel before it began to pour. He heard a little scrunching sound on the pebbled road behind him before suddenly feeling something pulling and clamping at his overcoat. He half-turned to find what looked like two black kittens clawing his coat as if begging to be picked up. The noises coming out of their throats was half-growl and half-purr.

It took a moment for Harry to gather his wits. He looked up to see Mr. Warsh standing at the entrance of his shop, tears streaming down his face. He seemed to nod his head as if encouraging Harry to embrace them. He looked back down at the kittens. No, he couldn't have them. He didn't want them. They couldn't take Hedwig's place. He didn't have any place to stay himself, where would he keep pets? With these arguments in mind Harry tried to pull his coat away from them. But their claws were so sharp as were their teeth. And they seemed determined not to let Harry go. Harry wouldn't give in either. He tugged and pulled and managed to free his overcoat only to find the kittens sinking their claws firmly on his torn jeans. Harry hobbled over to where an empty carton was lying by the road and taking it somehow managed to trap the kittens in it. They continued their half-growling pleas but Harry turned and walked away, much to the disappointment of Mr. Warsh. Harry's heart was heavy as he walked away. Mr. Warsh watched him go. No matter, the cubs had chosen their master, they would become Harry's companions sooner or later. They weren't called magical creatures for nothing.


	3. A New Image

**Chapter 3: A New Image**

Harry entered the Leaky Cauldron when the storm had already begun. Some people were sitting in clusters around the tables. Tom the innkeeper was behind the bar, wiping glasses and looking at Harry with a kindly and inviting expression. Harry just stared blankly for a moment before heading for the opposite door leading to muggle London. Tom's expression changed to disappointment watching Harry's retreating back. Harry pulled open the huge door inwards and tried to step out. His attempt was however doomed. A torrent of wind and rain blew his slight frame back into the inn despite his best efforts. Harry closed the door with difficulty to give himself a moment to breathe. He had wanted to go to the nearby muggle hotel, the one he'd stayed in when his first trial was going on. Now it seemed he would have to cancel that plan altogether or wait for the storm to blow over which could take anywhere from a couple of hours to a whole day's time.

Harry was deeply reluctant to stay at the Leaky Cauldron. He didn't want anyone trying to approach him or speak to him. He knew that seeing some wizards would be unavoidable but he deserved to have a little time to himself first. And his pride made him want to brave the storm rather than ask Tom for a room for the night. However common sense told him there was nothing to be gained of defeating Voldemort if he was going to go and die of pneumonia. Hesitantly, he turned around and approached Tom whose eyes had lit up eagerly even if Harry didn't notice. Harry stood at the bar his hand tracing the surface as he tried to swallow his pride and work up the courage to ask Tom.

"Can I, can I.......I mean, are there any single rooms available tonight" Harry questioned.

"Yes, of course Mr. Potter. I presume you would like a single room for the night? I have just the room. If you would follow me..." Tom the innkeeper turned to the keys hanging on the wall behind the bar and selected one to avoid sounding too enthusiastic. Harry was glad he had put his ill feelings aside as he followed Tom up the stairs. He was led to a cozy little room with a view of Diagon Alley and a four-poster bed. In fact it was the same room he had stayed in before his Third Year.

After seeing that he didn't need anything else, Tom closed the door and headed back downstairs. He was ecstatic that Harry had decided to stay. God was on his side for Harry surely would have left if it wasn't for the storm. He knew he didn't deserve to be forgiven so easily. He remembered when Harry had come to him during his trial a year ago to ask for a room and he had snubbed him off, lying that all the rooms were full. He was extremely thankful that he hadn't given in to his emotions to insult and hurt Harry then. He owed it to a muggle he had once met who gave him invaluable advice. He had said 'Never let your personal emotions make your business decisions'. He had tried to follow that advice as best as he could. Tom went back to his work with his conscience just a bit clearer than earlier.

Harry had taken a hot shower before putting on his ragged clothes back on. It was too bad that he didn't have any other clothes and going to the closest muggle supermarket was impossible in the storm. He was further dismayed that the little sharp piece of something sticking in his back was still unreachable and the wound wouldn't stop bleeding. He was also very hungry by now but he couldn't bring himself to go down and try to get something to eat. When he had been sent to Azkaban and left there to rot he had made a vow to himself to become as independent as possible. He had always had a problem with asking others for anything. His snarky relatives and friendless childhood had made him become self-sufficient. But Hogwarts and his friendships there had taught him to ask for help when he really needed it. And that lesson was the one that caused him to suffer the greatest humiliations in his short life.

There was a part of him that was angry at his decision to stay tonight. That part would gladly prefer to sleep even on the park-bench where he had slept that night long ago when Tom turned him down. Having got nothing from Diagon Alley and being told abruptly that the Leaky Cauldron was full, he had wandered into muggle London. Never having been in the city before except for Diagon Alley, he knew no place to go. He had wandered trying to find a hotel but it was late and he couldn't find any place to stay. Feeling tired, he had sat down on a bench in one of the parks and fell asleep there. He had managed to find a hotel close to Diagon Alley the next day and stayed there for the duration of his trial. He had used pen and paper instead of quill and parchment but the lack of knowledge on Wizarding laws cost him. Not having anyone on his side and being unfamiliar with the system, he couldn't defend himself against the accusations of the death-eaters who worked for the ministry. That had finished off his trial faster and he had been unable to change the ruling.

Harry tried again to reach his back and attempt to stop the bleeding, but he couldn't do anything except cause more pain and make his little wound bleed even more. He gave up and approached the bed when he realized that his bleeding back would most certainly stain the white bed sheets. He had no idea what to expect from Tom in the morning if that happened. Well, he'd slept on hard stone and empty stomachs for over a year. Surely another night wouldn't kill him. So he settled on the corner under the window which wasn't covered by the carpet and pulling his coat over like a blanket, he tried to get some sleep.

Tom had served dinner for all his customers and cleared up most of the tables and Harry still hadn't come down for his dinner. Tom thought that Harry probably wanted to avoid the stares he was bound to get if he came downstairs. With that thought, he prepared a tray with a huge dinner and took it upstairs. When he knocked softly on the door there was no reply. He tried again but the day's events had left Harry completely exhausted and he didn't wake. Balancing the tray, Tom opened the door to find Harry fast asleep in the corner of the floor covered with that flimsy piece of clothing.

It was not fair, he thought as he set the tray down on the table and closed the door. It was not fair that the whole wizarding world cheered and celebrated the demise of you-know-who when the one responsible for his downfall was all alone and sleeping on the floor. Tom couldn't see clearly through his tears as he searched for some clothes in the trunk. It was not fair that the boy had to go to sleep hungry when everyone else was partying and eating merrily thanks to him, he thought as he took the clothes and headed back for Harry's room. He stopped outside the door to wipe away the tears, Harry wouldn't appreciate the tears. Putting on a more calm and kindly face, he knocked again and entered finding Harry still asleep. He put the clothes on the chair before shaking Harry gently.

"Harry, why are you sleeping on the floor?" Tom waited as Harry woke up blinking groggily, the dirty and torn coat sliding down a little to reveal the equally dirty and torn shirt he was wearing.

"Oh...uhmm.....my back won't stop bleeding and I didn't want to stain the bed sheets", Harry replied, still more asleep than awake.

"What happened to your back?" Tom asked keeping his emotions out of his voice as he helped Harry up.

"Two of the prisoners stabbed me with something on the boat", Harry was fully awake by the time he said that.

"Well, you should have said something. Here, let me heal that for you" Tom's tone was of one scolding a small child. He got Harry out of his shirt and muttered a healing spell before marching Harry to the bathroom with the clothes he had brought, ignoring all of Harry's protests. The clothes were from one of the abandoned trunks. People sometimes left behind things in their hurry to leave and Tom would normally throw them away after waiting for some time. They were available and Harry might as well make use of them, he said. Tom cleared up the blood stains on the floor where Harry was sleeping and concentrated on maintaining his composure. He wasn't close to the boy, but from his long experience of meeting people he had learnt to read their emotions and Harry was the last person to accept pity or charity. He pretended to bustle around the room as Harry finished changing then more or less ordered the boy into bed and set the dinner tray on his lap.

"Now, eat. Why didn't you come down for dinner?" he asked as he slowly began to fold Harry's clothes.

"I didn't want to scare away your customers" Harry answered wryly between mouthfuls of delicious hot soup.

"Well, you should have at least rang and asked for some food to be sent up. Never mind now. Where are your spectacles?" Tom asked hoping he wasn't prying.

"I don't need them anymore" he was surprised by the bitter reply.

"Whyever not?" he asked his curiosity getting the better of him.

Harry stared at him bluntly before turning back to his dinner.

"They got crushed when I was being taken to Azkaban. Since I was going to spend the next fourteen years in a dark cell, the aurors saw no reason to repair it. So I didn't have any glasses in Azkaban. At first things were all blurry and I couldn't see anything but slowly my vision got better. So now I don't think I need them anymore." He only explained all that because Tom had been kind enough to bring him dinner.

"Oh" was all that Tom said. He finished folding the ruined clothes distractedly and headed for the door.

"Where are you taking my clothes?" Harry asked

"They are all ruined. I'm just going to throw these away and find something that fits for you to wear tomorrow."

"No, don't throw them away. I want to keep them" Tom shrugged and put the clothes down before going off to search for said clothes. By the time he came back, Harry had finished his dinner. He took the dinner tray and left after bidding Harry goodnight.

Harry was glad he had stayed for the night. With that thought he stretched out and went to sleep on the bed that felt too soft.

Harry woke up to the sound of birds chirping outside his window. He found sunlight streaming in and the noises of people opening their shops in Diagon Alley below. He lay motionless for a moment as he realized he hadn't had any nightmares or visions. Of course with Voldemort dead, he wouldn't be subjected to another vision for the rest of his life and he had probably been too tired the day before for nightmares.

Harry tried to get up but immediately fell back as various parts of his body protested to movement by making odd popping sounds. His bones were all stiff and whatever remained of his muscles on his meager body ached with the slightest movement. Sleeping on a soft bed after a year of sleeping on stone wasn't such a good idea after all. Harry slowly made his way to the bathroom hoping a hot shower would lessen the pain. He was right, he thought as he came out dressed in the clothes Tom had given him.

Harry was about to sit down when there was a knock on his door. Tom entered with a mouth-watering tray of breakfast. He set it on the table in front of Harry and asked if he wanted anything else. Harry asked for a bag to put his clothes in and Tom left promising to bring him one later. Harry ate his first proper breakfast in ages slowly to savor it. Breakfast had always been his favorite meal of the day. He sat back and relaxed for a moment.

It was time to think about his future. If it was true that only a year had passed since his imprisonment, it meant that he was now fifteen going on sixteen. That meant he was a minor and had to stay with his guardians. However, he thought he had been through more than his share of misery and he was not about to put up with more. Since he had already been expelled from Hogwarts and his relatives probably didn't know or care where he had been for the past year, it was time to say goodbye to his old life and start a new one. He could disappear into the muggle world, find a place to stay, get a job, maybe finish muggle school. Heck, he didn't need money, he was a millionaire.

He no longer wanted to be a part of the wizarding world. Without his wand, he couldn't do much anyway and he could live without magical stain removers, talking mirrors and such. Meeting people he knew would only cause him unnecessary pain. Yes, it was best if he left this world behind. He would miss doing magic but the way he saw it, it was probably for the best if he never did any magic ever again. During his more sane hours in Azkaban Harry would sometimes try to figure out the reason for wizarding folks' stupidity. Surely they weren't naturally so stupid as to fall for every death-eater's lies and tricks and stereotype all people as either good or evil. Why were they so ready to believe that the boy-had-caused-Voldemort's-fall-at-age-one would join the murderer of his parents? All his past experiences with the wizarding world showed him a lack of intelligence or something among wizards when compared to muggles. The lies printed in the Daily Prophet and the people who were so quick to believe it. The election of a pure dimwit with his pin-striped bowler hat who worried more about his popularity as Minister rather than the very real threat of Voldemort. Witches and wizards everywhere who ignored the most obvious things under their noses and went out of their way to find some obscure and unbelievable rationale about Harry's motives and guilt. Surely this blockheadedness wasn't natural. Harry had come up with a theory that this dull-mindedness was caused by the use of magic. The more magic they used, the stupider they became. And so good riddance to it he thought though there was a huge part of his mind that doubted the theory and bitterly missed doing magic.

Harry was sitting on the windowsill, watching some early shoppers go around the Alley when there was a knock on his door. The door opened to reveal none other than Albus Dumbledore.

"May I come in?" he asked the forlorn young man.

Harry sighed before nodding and moving back to the couch. He knew he would have to speak to the old man sooner or late. Dumbledore closed the door behind him and sat opposite Harry, his beard as snowy-white as Harry's freshly washed hair.

"Harry, I would like to apologize on behalf of myself and the rest of Hogwarts staff for expelling you and not supporting you last year. Here is an official letter of apology and your re-admittance into Hogwarts" he handed Harry a scroll of parchment with Hogwarts' seal on it. Harry accepted and after giving it a brief look, rolled it back.

"Thank you, headmaster. But the re-admittance will not be necessary. I have no wish to return to Hogwarts" Harry looked calmly at the man who had once been his mentor.

"I'm sorry Harry. According to Wizarding laws and the latest decree passed by the Wizengamot, you have no choice but to finish your formal education at Hogwarts." The Headmaster explained an old law that had only recently been updated.

Harry had a hard time keeping his anger in check. How dare they? How dare they try to tell him how to live his life? Hadn't he been through enough? But he could see that Dumbledore was miserable for being the bringer of this news. The old man might have failed Harry at the Tournament but he could still read Harry as well as ever.

Harry just listened to what he had to say and nodded when he was finished. He was still seething inside but he understood that since he was a minor and an orphan moreover, the ministry could pretty much rule his life until he turned eighteen. And far be it for those meddling fools to leave him in peace. At least the term had just ended and he would have three months of holidays before he would have to face Hogwarts again.

"If that is all....." Harry began wanting to end the conversation but apparently Dumbledore had more to say.

Being a minor, Harry couldn't stay alone for the summer. Especially since the media of the wizarding world would be keeping a close watch on him. Not to mention some remaining Death-eaters who might try to exact revenge on him for Voldemort's death. He would have to stay with someone for the summer. The Weasleys and Sirius Black as well as some other wizarding families had offered to let him stay with them. In fact the Weasleys had come personally and were waiting downstairs in the hope that Harry would go stay with them for the summer.

Harry seemed to give the matter a great deal of thought before replying but from the clenching of his jaw at the mention of the Weasleys, Dumbledore knew his decision had been made from the beginning.

"As much as I appreciate their kind gesture, I think I will prefer to return to the Dursleys' for the summer like I always did. It is after all the safest place for me to be, isn't it?" Harry's voice dripped with sarcasm as his steady gaze remained on Dumbledore.

Dumbledore couldn't look into the young wizard's accusing eyes and stared at his hands instead. He tried to get Harry to reconsider but knew it was futile. Finally, he sighed gloomily and informed Harry that he would escort him to the Ministry car that would take him to Surrey. Harry sighed in frustration before getting up and picking his folded clothes. He followed Dumbledore downstairs to find the pub full to brimming of people and a sea of redheads standing up and looking at him anxiously. He ignored them and Hermione and Sirius who were also there looking at him nervously. The silence was deafening as curious witches and wizards stared at Harry in wonder while looked miserable and apologetic. Harry went up to the bar and handed his key to Tom. He paid Tom for the night's stay and dinner and breakfast in galleons. Tom was smarter than most and realized that refusing to accept the money would be a blow to the boy's pride and alienate him forever. He took the paper bag that Tom had promised earlier and put the rags he had been wearing the day before in it. He gave Tom a small smile, thanking him sincerely.

"Why do you want to keep those dirty rags? Let me get rid of them for you", a boy who had been clearing the tables offered.

"No. I want to keep them. I want to remember Azkaban" Harry's voice once again had the same dead quality as the day before.

Mr. Weasley winced and turned a questioning gaze on the headmaster. Dumbledore shook his head dejectedly. Mrs. Weasley understood the meaning of that and hesitantly approached Harry.

"Harry dear, I know you must be terribly angry with us but please give us a chance to make it up to you. We are all very sorry for what happened. We should have had more faith in you. Please....come back to the Burrow with us. Please.." she pleaded, her voice breaking with emotion.

Harry turned from the bar towards her and glared at her. His cold stare caused her to take a step back.

"I don't wish to go anywhere with any of you. Nothing you say or do could ever make up for my time in Azkaban. Leave me alone" his voice was calm and icy.

He took his bag and looked at Dumbledore who immediately walked towards the entrance of the Leaky Cauldron. He followed and the Weasleys, Sirius and Hermione all moved at once as if to stop him. He halted his steps and gave each and everyone of them such an accusing and cold glare that they stopped at once and dropped their gaze to the floor. He walked out of the pub in a fine temper, told Dumbledore that he didn't have to escort him all the way back to Surrey, sat in the backseat and slammed the car door. He tried to calm down as the car began its journey but every time he remembered their faces, he would feel his blood boil again.

How dare they think they could make up for abandoning him to Azkaban? How dare they even speak to him? The nerve of them, to expect him to come and live with them. Did they think they could all pretend that nothing happened to him? He never wanted to see any of them again if he had a choice. And the rest of the people back in the pub? How dare they look at him so pityingly? They had no right to pity him, to treat him like a crippled beggar. They didn't dare say Voldemort's name. They treated the monster with fear bordering on respect. He was sure none of the reporters had ever pestered Voldemort for an interview. But they treated him, their savior like some poor orphan boy. He had had it with the unfairness in the world. They had no right to pity him. They should all feel guilty, they should all regret their stupid actions of condemning him. He was going to remind them of that every chance he got. Oh yes, he was no longer the timid little boy who quietly endured every accusation thrown at him. Maybe, just maybe if he had defended himself against false accusations at Hogwarts, he wouldn't have been sent to Azkaban. If he had shouted and screamed at the Gryffindors who were mad at him for losing 150 points in his first year, maybe all of this wouldn't have happened. Maybe if he had stood up to the people who accused him of being Slytherin's Heir, he would have a little of their respect. Maybe if he had tried to stand up for himself when most of them hated him for becoming Champion in his Fourth Year, they would have paid attention to his pleas.

He couldn't change the past but he would certainly change the future. If he had to go back to Hogwarts and once again live under the same roof as those fools, he would make sure they realized their stupidity. He was sick and tired of being punished for things that he didn't do. This time they would get to know the real him. The real him that had survived Voldemort four times and finally defeated him all on his own. The real him that had spent a whole year in a prison guarded by his worst fears and survived it. They would never again pity him. They would show him the respect he deserved. They would realize that they couldn't control his life, as no doubt the minister wanted to do. He was not some orphan boy that lived on welfare. He was the only son of two powerful wizards, Lily and James Potter. He would make his parents proud of him. He had no wish to rule them or destroy them but he would no longer subject himself to their narrow-mindedness. It was time the wizarding world acknowledged the great wrong they had done him. It was time they acknowledged the greatest favor he had done them. It was time they learnt that the-boy-who-lived had become the-man-who-saved-them-all.

Harry needed to change his appearance. He needed to change the way he carried himself. He needed to be able to intimidate the reporters into leaving him alone. He needed to become a new person. Harry was lost in thought as he arrived at Privet Drive. He was preoccupied as he stepped out of the car and headed for the front door. He barely registered his aunt's shocked gasp at his appearance or his uncle's frustrated growl to the two badly dressed Ministry officials who were explaining everything to the Dursleys. Harry just moved past them and headed for his small bedroom. He lay down on his bed thinking of all the changes he needed to go through to make his new image. He had three months to complete his transformation.


	4. Settling in at Number Four

**Chapter 4: Settling in at Number Four**

Harry lay on his bed contemplating the ceiling when a huge owl flew through his open window carrying a big and bulky envelope. Harry got up and untied the package. He swallowed hard as he noticed he didn't have any owl treats or Hedwig's water bowl to offer. The owl just waited long enough to be rid of the package before taking off. The large envelope had the seal of the Ministry of Magic. Harry opened it and took out the sheaf of official papers. He laid them on his bed then scanned through them. The first piece was an official apology from the Ministry for his wrongful imprisonment signed by Fudge himself. The second piece was about the compensation settlement of one million galleons that had already been deposited at Gringgots. The rest of it was about different laws and such stating how he would have to remain in his guardians' custody until he was of age. Harry also had to return to Hogwarts next term and complete his education there. He could transfer to a different magical school but he would need his guardians to file an application at the Ministry since magical schools didn't normally have transfer students.

Harry snorted at the last piece of information. Yeah right, he could just see the Dursleys flooing over to the Ministry and explaining to a panel of wizards in their pointy hats that their nephew needed to change schools because of the trauma he had suffered at Hogwarts, then signing their application parchments with the quills and telling the wizards they hoped to be owled soon.

Harry knew what all this was about. This was all just an elaborate plan to keep him there. They wanted to write their history books and they wanted their hero to praise and drink to. They wanted to control his life, now that he was no longer needed to defeat Voldemort, he was needed to smile at the cameras and give speeches at the galas. They wanted to pretend that Azkaban never happened. Fudge wanted to regain popularity and use Harry for it. Newly altered laws indeed! He smiled a cold smile. He would play along for now. He would go back to Hogwarts and resume his studies. He would stay with his guardians. But he certainly wouldn't smile for the tabloids and he certainly wouldn't let them meddle in his life once he was of age.

Harry knew that being alone and friendless left him at a disadvantage. But he was filthy rich now. And money was power. In the past all he had ever wanted was to be left alone by the press. He had fought Voldemort many times but he had never wanted any recognition or praise for it. Now, it was time to get the correct image. He would make them remember all that he had done for them and he would make them remember what they had done for him in return. He knew the press would hound him every chance they got. Ducking his head and mumbling foolishly wouldn't get rid of them. Neither would ignoring them and remaining silent. There were some things that one could learn from one's enemy. He hated to admit it but Lucius Malfoy's cool disdain and Severus Snape's biting sarcasm would be the perfect weapon against people like Rita Skeeter.

So he needed a haircut, a new wardrobe and an attitude. He wondered where he could get the last one. Harry headed down for lunch when he heard the sound of plates and cutlery from the kitchen. He didn't have anything to wear other than the clothes he was wearing. Aunt Petunia would probably give him some of Dudley's old things if he pleaded nicely but he wouldn't bet on it. He entered the kitchen to find his aunt and uncle already seated and Dudley just about to take his place. 'The diet must be working' he thought noticing that Dudley hadn't gained any weight since the last time he saw him. He hadn't lost any weight either but he looked a little less repulsive. It was probably due to the added height, Harry thought feeling like a midget himself. He definitely needed more height to go with his new image.

His aunt's lips turned into thin lines of disapproval at the sight of him. His uncle's face turned the customary purple color that only Harry could cause. Harry ignored it all and sat down to his lunch with a bland expression. The lunch passed in silence. Once he was finished, Harry got up and left the kitchen without a backward glance. He wasn't about to do any chores for the Dursleys. They could do their own chores from now on. He smiled to himself as he thought exactly what he would do if they dared to give him chores.

Harry found another owl waiting for him when he returned to his room. This one was from Gringgots. It contained the key to his new one-million-galleons vault with some forms he had to sign and a letter giving him an update on his new and old vault. The goblins had also explained his options for investment and such. They were prepared to carry out whatever changes Harry wanted with his account within 24 hours. Harry looked around his room and found a half broken pencil after some rummaging under Dudley's latest junk that was heaped in a corner. He wrote down a quick letter at the back of the goblins' letter and tied it to the waiting owl's leg. He had asked for half a million galleons to be transferred immediately to a muggle bank and no acknowledgement letters from the bank should be sent to his relatives' house. He would go to the bank and handle everything personally tomorrow.

Harry sat back on his bed, sighing with satisfaction. He ran a hand through his slightly tangled hair wondering what the people at the bank would think of his appearance. He knew he looked like an old man at first glance and his stooping posture didn't help, he thought sitting straighter all of a sudden. Well, at least it had managed to scare the Dursleys into silence. He knew it wouldn't last long. Harry took out the slightly singed picture of his parents. They still smiled gaily at him even though the outlines were charred. He touched the picture gently. No, they didn't deserve a madman for a son. They didn't deserve a coward either. He had heard many insults directly aimed at his parents last year. He wouldn't let their memories be tainted. He would make everyone show them the respect they deserved. And he would make them proud. He hoped he had partially achieved that by killing the vile Serpent. But he knew if their son's name was going down in history, it should not be based on lies or wishful thinking on the part of the wizarding world. He wasn't about to stand anymore rubbish printed like 'tears filling his startling green eyes' that was written by Skeeter in his Fourth Year.

Harry just sat thinking random thoughts all afternoon. He had spent a year in misery, anger, hatred and other such emotions. He had no masochistic wish to suffer more of those. So he kept his mind off wizardkind altogether. Dinner was once again a silent affair. The Dursleys shot him curious and offended looks once in a while but kept their lips sealed.

The next morning dawned bright and clear and Harry got off his bed to get ready for the day. He hadn't gotten much sleep since the fragments of the first nightmare had woken him. He knew he used to scream loudly some nights in Azkaban because his voice would be hoarse the next day but he was unsure whether it was because of the visions or the nightmares.

Harry found the Dursleys whispering over breakfast but they stopped when he entered. It didn't bother him and he set about finishing his breakfast. Just as he got up to leave, his aunt stood up in front of him and handed him a piece of paper.

"This is the list of chores you have to do today", she told him stiffly.

"And you better get 'em all done if you want your supper, boy" his uncle grunted menacingly.

Harry looked at the impossibly long list of chores then back up at his aunt and grinned.

"Okay" he said simply.

"Where are you going?" his uncle was disgruntled at his apparent cheerfulness.

"I wasn't kidding, boy. If you don't fini-"

'I'll finish them, uncle. It's my supper on the line here" Harry replied cheerfully before walking out the front door.

First he headed for the bank. He received the expected stares from the people but once he mentioned his name to the bank clerk and his account was verified, he was taken straight to the manager, had tea served, and was treated with the utmost respect. He opened another account at the bank and transferred a small portion of the huge sum into it. He had a credit card made for the smaller account but not the big account. He cleared all other business and told the bank officials to send all correspondence to the address of the bank which had deposited his money, in other words Gringgots. After receiving his papers and credit card, he left the bank. He needed to do some shopping.

He was thinking where to go to get some clothes when he came upon an advertising poster for a fitness center nearby. He shrugged and made his way there. There was no harm in checking out the place. He found the place to be quite expensive looking. It was a vast property with tennis and basketball courts surrounded by lush green lawns in the front. The main building looked stylish with huge glass ceiling-to-floor windows. People were going in and out of the place, sometimes giving him curious looks.

Harry decided to see the inside and entered the main office. There were many tables with people sitting and talking to the staff. There was a friendly and relaxed atmosphere there. Harry picked up a brochure from a table laid out with lots of them in different colors, promoting different _packages_. There was the lose-weight package, the rejuvenate-your-youth package, the stress-buster package and such. They combined different activities, treatments, schedules and different prices. Harry was just reading through one of them when a smiling woman approached him. Though she was middle-aged she was stylishly dressed, her graying hair done up in an elegant knot.

"See anything you like, dear?" she asked him.

"Well, actually....I...this is complicated" yes, he definitely needed a personality makeover. This shy, frightened manner had to go.

"Why don't we sit down and see if we can find something you might like" she led him to one of the polished wood tables, sitting down and gesturing to the chair beside hers. There was a stack of brochures on the table too.

"Now, why don't you tell me what you're looking for. You're not here to get a membership for anyone else, are you? You know, as a present or something?" she asked.

"N-No, actually I was looking for something for myself" Harry replied.

She looked at his hair than at his young features quizzically before continuing.

"Right. Let me introduce myself. My name is Elaine Matthews and I work for Holistic Exizt Why don't you tell me a little about what you want and maybe I can offer some suggestions?"

"Okay. I'm fifteen going on sixteen. I'm on school holidays for the next three months with nothing to do and I want to join a fitness program that might help with my height and weight" Harry explained knowing the age part was important.

"Of course, we could arrange a three month program. Will you continue your fitness program once school starts, Mr...er?"

"Harry, Harry Potter. No, I go to a boarding school."

"Alright, Harry. Could I talk to your parents before we work out your fitness plan?" her brow wrinkled at the sudden saddened expression on the boy's face.

"They passed away. I live with my relatives" explaining that always brought a sharp pain in his chest.

"Oh...I'm so sorry" something about the boy made the woman want to reach out and comfort him.

"Could I speak to your relatives then?" she asked softly.

"Sure, you can call them. Do you need their permission or something?"

"Oh no dear. It's just that I need to check their budget. Packages can be individually designed to fit your daily routine and made affordable" she told him.

"Oh, that's okay then. My relatives aren't paying for this. I have my own inheritance and I'll be paying for this through that. I have an account at the local bank" Harry assured her.

Once Harry had paid the registration fees using his credit card and filled a form, his membership was processed. The local bank verified that he could afford the total amount for the three month package and all the paperwork was settled. Then Elaine took him to a different room and introduced him to Ashley Hudson before bidding him good luck and making her way back. Ashley was a young woman in her mid-twenties who worked there and she would be Harry's personal fitness trainer. She had waist length braided dirty-blonde hair and she seemed a very cheerful and energetic person making Harry feel at ease with her.

If he thought he had to answer many questions before, now it seemed Ashley wanted to know his whole life history. Harry felt himself closing up despite Ashley's warm and friendly demeanor. She wanted to know what happened to his hair. She wanted to know his eating habits for the past year or so. She wanted to know what sports or physical activities he had been doing lately. Harry tried to think up acceptable answers to her questions but ended up remaining silent. He realized that she needed truthful answers to be able to help him but he couldn't very well explain it to her.

Ashley seemed to sense that something was seriously wrong and decided to let Harry tell her what he wanted instead of asking questions. He looked so lost and uncertain at that moment. Harry took a deep breath. He needed this. He needed her help and he sensed she genuinely wanted to help him. So he decided to tell her everything. She was still a muggle so he couldn't tell her about the magical world but he could give her all the information she needed to help him. So he began his story falteringly, telling her a little about his life, explaining Voldemort as an underworld don and Azkaban as a top secret prison of the Intelligence and the dementors as a torturing device. He felt a little guilty lying to her and he felt a little uncertain whether she was buying his story. He was sure keeping his eyes lowered and wringing his hands weren't helping. He ended the story with his release just yesterday and the compensation money that the government had paid him just today.

When he raised his head uncertainly to look at her, he was shocked to find her in tears. He had explained everything as unemotionally as he could but it had still left her shaken. She wiped away the tears and smiled at him, telling him how sorry she was. It took her a moment to compose herself then she tried to sound cheerful. She decided to re-do the three month package. They could start with physical fitness twice a day for an hour and increase the duration once he got used to it. Since he needed a proper diet to maximize the effects, she suggested he have all his meals at the center. His membership should be changed to Premium so that he could access all the facilities. He would have swimming training as well as other sports.

Ashley took him back to Elaine to change his membership then led him out of the center. She told him she knew a great place where he could get a haircut and some clothes and Harry agreed to go with her. Ashley took him to an expensive three-storey boutique which had a hair-styling salon linked to it. The place was practically empty with only two women browsing together. Ashley dragged him in and called one of the salesgirls. Apparently she knew the girls who worked there very well. Harry continued to look around him. The place was tastefully furnished with soft light and lots of mirrors. Once the two ladies had left the boutique, all the other salesgirls crowded around them. Harry began to feel nervous surrounded by so many females at once. Ashley explained that Harry was a close friend and had come for a makeover which sent the other girls into squeals of delight. Harry felt a little frightened by their reaction and was wishing he hadn't come. Ashley further embarrassed him by explaining that she would be giving him a physical makeover at the gym while it was up to the girls to get him the right clothes and hair. They would need a few sets of clothes right now but the rest of the wardrobe would be bought later on.

Before he knew it, Harry was being handed a set of clothes and pushed towards the changing rooms. He was briskly ordered to try on a few more sets as the girls judged what suited him best before being whisked over to the hair-styling salon and having his hair fixed. The girls debated the best hairstyle over his head without paying him much attention. Harry was feeling completely manipulated and tried to get a word in but every time he opened his mouth he would get a remark like "Trust me darlin', men know nothing about style. Just let us handle it." Ashley had given some sort of explanation for his unusual hair-color and the two professional hairstylists discussed the best cut to go with it. The haircut and styling took over an hour to finish. They had suggested Harry get his hair dyed or have a few streaks added but Harry refused. His hair was now shoulder-length with shorter strands framing his face. The styling mousse and hair spray made it more manageable, giving it a stylishly messy look. He had been bombarded throughout the hour with tips on how to style his hair everyday from the stylists. The girls hurried him back to the changing rooms insisting he needed to try on more clothes to match with his hairstyle. After another exhausting half-hour, Harry finally paid for his purchases and stepped out, Ashley following him while promising the girls to bring him back soon. Harry gave her a harassed look which only made her burst into laughter.

They parted ways after Ashley told him to come to the fitness center two days later. She needed to research growth spurts and the correct diet on his behalf. Harry returned to Privet Drive to drop off his shopping bags. He left them in his room and hid his credit card and bank papers changing into one of his new outfits before heading out again. It was time to take care of the Dursleys' chores once and for all. He walked around town searching for the place where he would find what he was looking for. He smiled to himself. The morning had done him a whole world of good. He had felt like a guinea pig back at the boutique as Sally complained about her boyfriend's taste in clothes and Joanne sighed in sympathy while filing her nails and Kelly ordered him to straighten his collar and turn around but he had enjoyed it all the same. People still stared at him as he walked the streets but his clothes and hairstyle made him seem more like a normally weird teenager.

At last he found what he had been looking for. A run-down street littered with rubbish, punks, Goths and an assortment of teenage weirdoes. Harry watched two of them banging sticks against trash cans and a few ride by on motorbikes while the others stood around in groups. Harry approached one of the younger groups with teens around his own height and build. Gathering his Gryffindor courage, he made them an offer. He would pay them a hundred pounds each if they followed him home and did his chores. At first they didn't take him seriously but after some convincing and a few glances at Harry's brand new clothes, they agreed to go with him. Harry led them back to Privet Drive and what a sight they made strolling behind him in all their leather and torn denim glory down the prim and proper lane. Harry couldn't stop grinning as they reached Number Four. He took out the list of chores and began handing out clippers and paint and brush to them. His uncle and aunt came out and spent two whole minutes gaping at the lot of them. Then his uncle's face turned the nastiest purple color to date and he began to shout at him. Just then their neighbor opened her window to see what was making all that noise.

"Hello Mrs. Sullivan" Harry yelled cheerfully waving and grinning.

The old lady stared at Harry open-mouthed then stared at the weirdly dressed teenagers mowing the Dursleys' lawn and painting the fence then shut her window abruptly. Harry was telling one of the boys where to get the nail and hammer to fix the number-plate on the front door when his uncle stomped off to the living room. Apparently it was all too much for him. His aunt remained behind and ordered Harry to get rid of those _creatures_. Harry just smiled cheerfully and said no. She tried again using threats but he still refused. He told her quite clearly that he was not going to do another chore ever and if he had to get everything on the list done then he would just have to ask his new friends to help him out. She tried a few more threats but Harry's face had lost all playfulness and reflected powerful determination instead. In the end she finally told him he didn't have to do the chores, now would he get rid of his friends...._please_? Harry pretended to be concerned, the fence was half-painted it would be ruined if left to dry like that and the flowerbeds hadn't even been weeded yet. Who would do the trimming and the watering and what about the dishes and cooking breakfast.....so much work. Aunt Petunia was close to tears by now. Nearly half the people living on Privet Drive had peered out of their windows and some had even come out to watch. She promised him that he didn't have to do any more chores, she would do it all herself or get Dudley to do it, she was all but begging him now with her hands clasped together. He took pity on her and told the teenagers to stop and wash their hands. Harry sprinted up the stairs and retrieved the money he had gotten from Gringgots and once his aunt had returned to the kitchen, he handed them a hundred pounds each and nodded at their enthusiastic thanks. The boy who had been hammering the front door stayed behind a moment to inform Harry that his uncle worked at a furniture store and could do some hammering and renovating if needed. Harry thought about it and then asked for his name and address. The boy called Jonny gave him his uncle's card and told him the directions to the store. Harry smiled, his bedroom could definitely use some renovating and new furniture wouldn't hurt.

Harry went back inside to find Aunt Petunia trying her best to calm her husband. Uncle Vernon was in a fine rage and the moment Harry stepped inside and closed the front door he began to shout at Harry.

"HOW DARE YOU? HOW DARE YOU BRING THOSE HOOLIGANS TO OUR HOUSE? YOU HAVE NO RIGHT TO BRING ANY OF YOUR FREAK FRIENDS TO OUR HOME. AS IF IT WASN'T BAD ENOUGH HAVING TO KEEP YOU HERE WITH ALL YOUR FREAKY HAIR AND YOUR FREAKINESS, YOU UNGRATEFUL LITTLE BRAT. WE SHOULD HAVE SENT YOU TO AN ORPHANAGE FROM THE START. THIS IS HOW YOU REPAY ALL OUR KINDNESS? AFTER SO MANY YEARS THAT WE LOOKED AFTER YOU SINCE YOUR WORTHLESS PARENTS GOT THEMSELVES KILLED. FREAKS, BOTH OF THEM, A BURDEN TO SOCIETY. AND THEY LEFT YOU BEHIND, JUST AS FREAKY AS THEM-"

"SHUT UP. DON'T YOU DARE SAY ANOTHER WORD ABOUT MY PARENTS. I'M SICK AND TIRED OF LISTENING TO YOU. IF YOU OPEN YOUR MOUTH AGAIN, I WILL HEX YOU AND THE MINISTRY BE DAMNED. I KILLED VOLDEMORT, I CAN KILL ANYONE" Harry replied with fury.

This seemed to shut his uncle up but Harry wasn't finished. He took a deep breath and lowered his voice a few notches though he was still partly yelling.

"How dare you speak about my parents? How dare you say those things? You never even knew them. They died fighting for your kind. They were killed by Voldemort. Voldemort who wanted to kill all muggles and leave this world free of people like you. They fought him even though they were wizards and so not threatened by him. Voldemort wasn't after wizards, he was after you, _normal_ people. If my parents and others like them hadn't stood against Voldemort you would all be dead by now. You would all be dead and my parents would be alive. And as for your _kindness_ to me, I would much rather have gone to an orphanage than spend so many miserable years with you. Where were you when I was imprisoned last year? Did you even bother to find out whether I was dead or alive? NO. You just thought good riddance, didn't you? Was that your kindness? Look at me, LOOK AT ME. See what I have been through. So much pain, all alone. Did you ever once think about me? Where was your kindness? Look At Me, Aunt Petunia, I'm your _sister's son_. Would my mother have let this happen to Dudley if you were the ones who had died? WOULD SHE, Aunt Petunia?"

Harry took a few deep breaths. He couldn't give in to his fury. His magic would react if he got angrier.

"I don't care what you think or what you do. The Ministry is making me stay here this summer and probably next summer too. After that I hope to never see any of you again. As long as I stay here though, I WILL do _exactly_ what I want to do. I have just killed Voldemort. Thanks to me you don't have to fear for your lives and your son's life. And now you can truthfully tell the neighbors what a criminal I am. A murderer who has spent the last year in prison. Wouldn't that make a wonderful conversation over tea? I will stay here for the summer. I will come and go as I please. I will eat or not as I wish. You can try to give me chores or lock me up and starve me but I wouldn't advise it. Do whatever you please" Harry's voice held angry determination even as his tone remained calm and even.

Having said that, he climbed the stairs leaving his uncle and aunt speechless downstairs. His magic was still pulsing with his anger so as he reached his door, he focused his magic on the padlock and concentrated making it blow off the door, leaving only splintered wood and the doorjamb on his door. They couldn't lock him now, he thought satisfactorily as his anger and magic began to recede.

Harry didn't go down to dinner that night and left early next morning without breakfast. He walked around the shops for a while before stopping at a bakery. He sat at one of the tables outside the bakery and ordered a huge breakfast. He ate it leisurely as he watched the occasional passer-by and the other tables.

He headed for the furniture store he had heard about yesterday. It was huge with everything from beds and curtains to potted plants and aquariums. A man approached Harry with a huge smile and introduced himself as Jonathan's uncle. Oh, Jonathan as in Jonny. He had recognized Harry's white hair. He asked Harry what he wanted and Harry thought for a moment. True, he was only staying there for the summer and he could make do with what he had right now, but after a year in a cell, he thought he deserved a proper room, one that he liked. So Harry explained the size of his room and the location. Jonny's uncle took him to meet the store's semi-interior-decorator-expert and the three of them sat and discussed furniture for a while. Harry gave directions and the three of them returned to Privet Drive. After shaking the surprised Mr. Dursley's hand they followed Harry to his room and did their best to hide their astonishment at the difference between Harry's room and the rest of the house. They immediately made some more plans based on the lighting and the window placement. The rest of the day passed with various workers trooping in and out of the Dursleys' home. By the evening Harry had a stylish, and inviting bedroom with a totally different wall color and brand new furniture. Harry took Jonny's uncle and his friend out to dinner as a treat before returning home. He closed his soundproof door and changed for bed. He didn't have to worry about screaming from his nightmares anymore, he thought before going to sleep.

A/N: Long author's note ahead. Each paragraph is titled. Skip what doesn't interest you.

Harry and his angst: Harry's not a moron. He hasn't forgiven anyone so far. He holds everyone responsible for his imprisonment, but after a year it's hard to hold on to raw, savage fury. His anger is the aloof, you-no-longer-mean-anything-to-me kinda anger. Sorry, I'm no good at the Dark! Harry theme. I follow the good-over-evil philosophy.

Harry and Hogwarts: Harry's going back to Hogwarts as explained in this chapter. Just not yet. He's not gonna break rules or ignore teachers but he's not gonna forgive 'em either.

Tom and Dumbledore: Tom the innkeeper didn't tell Dumbledore that Harry was there. Somebody having dinner at the inn probably told him. Harry was not warm just okay with Tom because Tom was the only person who treated him civilly during his trial. Tom turned him down too but he didn't humiliate the boy like everyone else.

The Wizarding World: I think wizards are narrow-minded and quick to condemn. They hold muggles in contempt but they're so backwards they still use candles and torches. Also it is human nature to destroy without thinking when under serious threat, hence the unfairness to Harry and the Diagon Alley fiasco.

The White Hair: Lots of you seem to dislike this. You guys obviously don't watch TV series about Ancient China (you know, the 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' type). In those sometimes a character gets white hair as a curse for falling in love with a goddess or because of a long meditation or as a side effect of some deadly poison or lethal martial arts etc. Trust me, they look gorgeous. Also there was an episode in 'Charmed' where witches were killed by making them live through their worst fears and their hair turned white just before they died. Now look at Harry through my eyes: His hair is pure white, with no gray or black strands. It is wiry, as in it doesn't fall in clumps or locks but each individual strand is separate (No, don't get that electrocuted image in your head). It brushes his shoulders every time he moves. Can't you anime fans just imagine him sitting alone, leaning against a pillar, one arm supported by a raised knee as he watches the sunset, a gentle breeze suddenly blowing from behind making the shorter strands blow forwards like a fluid white curtain hiding his emerald eyes (this is seen as a side-profile). I gave him white hair because it serves as a clear reminder of the amount of suffering he's been through and constantly guilt-trips the others. Even Sirius' twelve years can't compare to his single year with his Worst Fears _and_ the nightmares _and_ the Voldemort-visions. Also it means that he gets the stares even from muggles now and he has to get used to the attention. Like one of the reviewers said 'White hair rules!'


	5. Vicky and her Stupid Friends

**Chapter 5: Vicky and her Stupid Friends**

Harry was sitting on a bench in the park, watching some children play. They were so carefree, laughing and screaming with delight or chasing each other, giggling all the while. Harry spent every evening just sitting there and enjoying the atmosphere. It had been two weeks since his release from Azkaban. He was getting on very well with his fitness program though he hadn't noticed any drastic changes yet. He had all his meals there with Ashley scolding him every time he said he was full before he had finished everything on his super-sized plate and the tall glass of protein shake or whatever it was. He was proud to say he had learnt how to swim rather well in a short time.

Harry had visited the local bookstore and bought a few books that interested him. He spent his days swimming, working out, reading or just roaming around town. The Dursleys were back to ignoring him and he them. It didn't bother him but he wondered about the lost look his aunt sometimes gave him. He didn't think it was possible for her to feel guilty, she was probably trying to come up with a believable story about his hair-color to tell her friends. The nightmares were back in full swing but he was so used to them that he would just lay back on the bed and go back to sleep after waking up screaming. Harry tried to keep busy and ignore the sadness and hurt that he sometimes felt whenever he saw a group of friends doing something together.

Harry was jolted out of his thoughts by a sudden burst of laughter not far from him. Most of the kids had returned home since it was getting dark but there was a group of teenage girls wandering together and laughing at something. As they got closer to the bench where he was sitting one of them looked straight at him. Her smile faltered and she gazed curiously at him. Harry saw her and turned his head the other way wondering whether to go swim or just stay for a while longer before he had his dinner.

The girl who had been staring at him stopped her friends not far from where Harry was sitting and asked them who he was in a whisper. She had wavy brown hair tied in a ponytail and wore a 'Casper the Friendly Ghost' T-shirt with jeans and sneakers.

"That boy? He's Harry Potter, Dudley's cousin. You remember Dudley, the big bully I showed you the other day? All of us used to go to the same school." Sandra, the blonde bookworm answered, pushing her glasses up.

"Let's go over and talk to him" the first one whispered back before turning towards Harry.

"NO Vicky! _Are you crazy_? He's dangerous. He goes to St. Brutus's Secure Centre for Incurably Criminal Boys." Sandra rasped in one breath and the other girls nodded fearfully.

Oblivious to the whispering girls, Harry got up and headed for Exizt for a swim before dinner. He'd do a couple of laps back-stroke, then listen to Ashley scold him over dinner for not practicing his freestyle.

"Oh look, he's gone" the other girls sighed with relief at Vicky's statement.

"Why is his hair white?" she asked sitting on the bench Harry had just vacated as her friends joined her.

"No one knows. My mom tried to ask Mrs. Dursley –that's his aunt– the other day and she got all upset and wouldn't answer" Janet replied.

"He's only here during the summer and last year he didn't come back at all." Sandra continued.

"Hmmm...interesting" Vicky said absentmindedly. She definitely had to talk to this Harry Potter the next time she saw him.

Albus Dumbledore put down the letter he was reading and leaned back into his chair, sighing tiredly. Ever since Harry's release from Azkaban he had been receiving hundreds of such letters. Many of them were from Harry's friends at school and their families wanting to know how he was, where he was, how to write to him and other such concerns. Most of them were from witches and wizards who wanted to thank Harry and some of them, offer to take Harry in for the summer. The Daily Prophet had reported that Harry would be returning to Hogwarts. It was lucky that no one except the Ministry of Magic and Hogwarts could send owls to Harry. After seeing Harry at the Leaky Cauldron, Dumbledore had advised Ron, Hermione and the others not to try and contact him for the summer. He knew that Harry was still angry and not ready to forgive anyone yet.

He sighed again, bowing his head in defeat. How did this happen? How could he have failed Harry so miserably? On the black night that all this had started, he had still been convinced of Harry's innocence. There had been so many people dead or injured and their loved ones almost mad with grief. And all the evidence had pointed to Harry. Dumbledore knew Harry wasn't capable of such cruelty but everyone else was convinced of his guilt. Dumbledore had thought the safest thing was to get Harry out of there, away from people who were on the verge of killing him in revenge, but the others, parents and teachers had insisted that he was a danger with a wand and he deserved to be punished. So he had done the only thing that would satisfy everyone enough to leave Harry unscathed. He had snapped his wand and had him expelled. He should have thought about the consequences of his actions. In court, his rash decision had been the final nail on the coffin and doomed Harry to Azkaban. But by then, Dumbledore himself had been convinced that Harry was a murderer, all thanks to Mad-Eye Moody who was discovered to be Barty Crouch Jr. just a month ago. He had shown Dumbledore and the court solid proof of Harry's Dark activities throughout the Tournament. Harry had been unable to defend himself against the accusations since he had spent so much time alone or with Ron and Hermione. His friends had turned against him by then, overwhelmed by the deaths around them and everyone else's poisonous accusations to Harry, their testimony had only helped destroy Harry's defense in court.

Dumbledore raised his head when there was a knock on the door and a gaunt and bone-tired Sirius entered his office.

"Headmaster, I need your signature on this application. The Ministry is making things harder then necessary as usual" he said, putting some papers in front of Dumbledore.

Dumbledore told him to sit down as he glanced through the custody papers. Sirius had barely begun to enjoy his freedom and now this happened. Barty Crouch and Wormtail were caught together and that resulted in a full pardon and a bulky compensation for Sirius. Since the day Harry was found to be innocent, Sirius had regained that haunted look in his eyes. It was hard to imagine that the weary man sitting in front of him had once been the spirited prankster with the most number of detentions at Hogwarts. Now he was trying his best to win guardianship of Harry. He needed to get Harry away from his unfeeling relatives and at least try to make up for the horrible injustice the boy had suffered all his life.

Dumbledore read through the papers before signing them and handing them back to him.

"Sirius, you have not been resting enough. You know this will take a long time. And Harry is spending this summer with his relatives. You will be seeing him when he gets back to Hogwarts anyway. Please take it easy for a while, Remus is worried about you" Dumbledore tried to persuade the stubborn man who was like a son to him.

"I cannot rest, Headmaster. Not after all that has happened. It isn't fair to Harry. He should be surrounded by people who love him right now. He needs it. He shouldn't be living alone with those muggles. I can't understand why you won't let me speak to him" the frustrated wizard said in agitation.

"Sirius, please. Try to understand. Harry needs time to come to terms with everything. He is far from ready for any pressure or decisions. Just give him some time."

"How can I? He has been through so much. When I remember what he had to endure...He came to me, pleading for some understanding, hoping for a little support. But I......I was too blind to see the truth. I was too caught up in my own memories to help him. I saw Pettigrew everytime I looked at him. I didn't even know him very well. I felt so hurt and betrayed that I lashed out at him.......th-the horrible things I said to him" Sirius shuddered, haunted once again with the immense guilt he had felt throughout his years in Azkaban for failing James and Lily.

"I....I should've known better. I had been falsely accused myself, I should've been there for him, sympathized with him but instead I shouted at him and accused him and turned away from him. Oh, God....what he must have been through......I suffered so much in Azkaban but I didn't have to bear witness to the hatred others felt for me, I didn't have to face my friends' loathing. He must have felt so alone. He will never forgive us. He will never forgive me. It was all my fault. He will hate me forever" Sirius was shaking his head, unaware of the tears flowing from his eyes.

"Sirius, Sirius...please calm down. It was not your fault. It was a great error that we committed but you alone are not responsible. In time, Harry will..."

"No! James and Lily had made me his guardian. I should have at least heard him out. I should've given him a chance to explain. I just shut him out. I was too wrapped up in my own feelings, thinking he was like Pettigrew. I felt betrayed by him like I was by Pettigrew. I abandoned him then. But I won't abandon him now. Harry _will_ have the home he deserves. He won't suffer ever again. He won't!" the haunted look was replaced by a determination to do right as Sirius retrieved the papers and left Dumbledore's office.

Dumbledore watched him go, thinking of all the obstacles ahead of them all. He doubted Harry would be able to let go and forgive easily but he hoped that in time all would be well. He closed his eyes as Fawkes let out a trill of soothing phoenix-song.

Harry was flipping through a non-fiction book at the bookstore when a voice close to him made him jump.

"What are you looking at?" Harry recognized the girl who'd been at the park the other day. She was looking at the book he was holding.

"Here" he said offering the book to her.

She didn't take the book but just kept looking at him.

"My name is Vicky Denver. What's yours?" she asked instead.

Harry placed the book back on the shelf and moved two rows away, browsing through the fiction section now. He had been caught by surprise at her question. He didn't know what to say. Every time he looked at someone around his own age he'd remember his friends at Hogwarts. He knew this Vicky and all the other youths in Surrey weren't the friends who had abandoned him but still he felt an irrational anger at them. He could speak to Ashley or Elaine but he would freeze whenever around his own age-group.

"You won't tell me your name? Too bad. I already know. It's Harry Potter isn't it?" the annoying girl had followed him and just stood there leaning against the bookshelf.

"What, nothing to say? Ignoring me won't help, you know. I'll just keep pestering you until you stop ignoring me" she continued.

Harry decided he'd come back another day. He took the two books he'd found earlier and went to pay at the counter. To his annoyance, the girl followed him. She just stood beside him as he paid for the books and took the plastic bag containing the books. Harry walked out of the bookstore quickly. As he turned his head back slightly to make sure she wasn't following him, Vicky grabbed his plastic bag from the other side and retreated a few steps.

"Give it back" Harry's voice was leveled though he felt his impatience grow.

"No" she replied impishly.

"What do you want?" his anger was beginning to show.

"I just wanna be friends" she replied spreading her hands.

Harry took the opportunity to try and grab his books but she was too quick and retreated just in time.

"_Vicky_? What on earth are you _doing_? Didn't you hear what I said about him? Why are you speaking to that dangerous freak..." Sandra said before she remembered that Harry could hear her too. She was looking at him fearfully.

Harry recognized the blonde girl who had been in his Fourth Grade Math class. His emerald eyes turned icy at her remark and he gave the girl a death-glare before snatching his plastic bag from a surprised Vicky and walking away.

"Now look what you did. I had almost made friends with him and you ruined it" Vicky scolded her friend angrily.

"Why would you want to be friends with him? He's a dangerous criminal" Sandra asked.

"Oh, that's all just bullshit. He's not a criminal" Vicky replied with conviction as the other girls joined them.

"How do you know? Why does he go to that school for criminals then?" one of the girls asked.

"Look, you guys went to school with him, right? Did he commit any crimes in school? Then? When did he have time to commit crimes? You said he went to that 'school' straight after finishing elementary. If he didn't commit any crimes while in school, then how can he be a criminal? Surely that 'school' his aunt claims to have sent him to doesn't take in 'future criminals' even if that is what the snobby woman claimed him to be." The other girls looked blank for a moment before they finally understood what she was saying.

"I saw his aunt at Janet's house the other day. She seems a completely over-dramatic gossip to me. I don't believe anything she says. I wanna talk to this Harry Potter" she declared before stomping off.

Harry was in the empty playground, legs dangling just above the ground from where he was sitting on the wooden thingamajiggy that was the bridge to the spaceship-thingy. He was recalling his own childhood when he heard several people approaching. He looked up to see the Vicky from the bookstore and her friends. Vicky nudged her blonde friend, the one with the careless remark at the bookstore and she came forward looking at him almost cautiously.

"I...I'm-I'm sorry about what I said the other day. I didn't mean it. Honest" she said almost childishly.

Harry stared at her causing her to gulp noisily then nodded.

"It's okay" he replied before turning his gaze back the other way. He hoped they'd all go away now but his wish wasn't granted.

"Sooo, how 'bout we be friends?" the ever-annoying Vicky suggested.

"No, thanks" Harry replied looking at her and her friends before getting down and walking off in the other direction.

"Whoa, what do you have against us anyway?" Vicky had raced and blocked his way.

He ran a hand through his hair exasperatedly wondering what on earth did the she-devil want from him.

"Look, I don't want to be _friends_ okay? So why don't you leave me alone?" he suggested coldly.

"Why don't you want to be friends? Everyone wants to have friends? Why do you want to be alone?" Vicky studied him as if he was an enigma she needed to solve.

"I'm not like everyone else. Just back off. I don't need friends" he spat viciously before side-stepping her and striding away.

"What a temper!" Vicky observed before turning to her friends.

"Oh, well. We'll catch him when he's in a better mood" she told them.

By the looks on their faces, Vicky knew they needed another round of convincing about the benefits of befriending the mysterious Mr. Potter. She flounced back to them and got started on her lecture all the while planning her next attack on him.

Harry was sitting in front of the bakery, sipping his chocolate shake when Vicky and two of her friends sat down on three of the empty chairs at his table.

"Hi, Harry! Whew, what a hot day! Is it always this hot in the summer here?" she asked one of her friends as she dumped her shopping bags on the table.

"Yeah, but you have to admit, the shopping is great. Hi Harry!" the other girl replied turning to smile at him.

"Here are your drinks, ladies. Hi Harry" Sandra placed the tray she was carrying on the table before taking the last empty chair.

Harry just stared at them, quite bewildered by their behavior. He put his unfinished milk-shake on the table and began to leave.

"Harry, you can't go! That's not very gentlemanly of you, leaving us ladies to pay for the drinks. No, don't take out your stupid wallet. We're not going to ask you to pay if you don't even have the courtesy to stay until we've finished. Honestly, what is the world coming to?" a girl whom Harry didn't even know retorted angrily pretending to be all offended as the girl beside her nodded righteously.

The girl's loud exclamation had caused the people at the neighboring table to stare at Harry disapprovingly. Harry gritted his teeth at the looks he was getting before Vicky pulled him down back into his chair.

"Sit down and finish your drink. All this anger is bad for your blood-pressure" she told him handing his drink back. He sat fuming as the girls chatted gaily, ignoring his deadly scowl.

"Hi, Mrs. Dursley. Can we come in?" Vicky was standing at the front door of Number Four with her friends.

"Oh...of course" Mrs. Dursley smiled before ushering the young ladies into the living room. Finally the neighborhood girls were beginning to notice her Dudley's fine qualities. Oh, how bittersweet it was to watch your son grow up.

"Would you girls like some tea? I just made a pot for myself" Mrs. Dursley asked before rushing away at their polite nods.

She quickly prepared the tray of tea and biscuits to occupy the girls while she called her Dudders. After taking the tray to the girls and nodding at their polite thank-yous, she rushed up the stairs to get Dudley.

"Dudley, Duddykinns. There are some nice young ladies here to see you" she knocked excitedly at his bedroom door.

Dudley opened the door looking confused but his confusion changed to delight as he heard what his mother had to say. Harry had been reading a science-fiction novel in his room when he heard his aunt speaking. He had a suspicion that it was that loony bunch of girls who followed him everywhere. He stepped out of his room and stood on the landing to listen.

"Here they are, Dudley. Now why don't you introduce me to your friends" Mrs. Dursley prompted looking expectantly at her son.

"Uhhh....Mrs. Dursley, we aren't here to see Dudley. Although he's a very nice guy and we're all glad to meet him" Vicky said and the other girls nodded vigorously.

"Actually.....we're here to see Harry......you know......your nephew?"

Harry who'd heard the whole exchange with glee still felt irritated with the girls. The nerve of them to come here, honestly! He stalked down to the living room and crossing his arms, glared at the girls.

"What are you doing here?" his question was directed to all but his gaze was focused on the impish ring-leader.

"Why Harry, is that any way to speak to your friends? We just came to see you! We hadn't seen you since Tuesday when you bought us drinks at the bakery. You had stalked off before we could thank you properly" Vicky said in a feigned hurt voice. She was a good actress, he'd give her that.

"I _am not_ your friend and I'll thank you to leave now" he replied bluntly.

"But we just got here. We haven't even finished our tea" Vicky whined, sitting down again and grabbing her cup of tea.

Mrs. Dursley who had been gaping open-mouthed for some time, pursed her lips and fixed her nephew with a grim look. How dare he? How dare he have such pretty girls as friends when her own Dudley didn't have a single female friend. He had no right to steal her Dudley's glory.

"Vernon will be home soon. He won't be pleased to find the dinner late because of guests. And the neighbours would no doubt prefer their daughters home before dark" she sniffed snobbily, staring at Harry with dislike before huffing off to the kitchen.

Dudley smiled goofily at the girls and glowered at his cousin before lumbering back upstairs. It just wasn't fair. What did the girls see in that freak cousin of his?

Harry turned back to the girls and sighed tiredly, crossing his arms.

"Well, have you finished your blasted tea?" he asked Vicky causing the girls to giggle.

"Not yet. Won't you sit down?" Vicky inquired unperturbed.

"No, I won't bloody sit down. Why are you doing this to me?" he asked feeling aggravated.

"We just want to get to know the mysterious Mr. Potter a little better" Vicky's answer made the girls giggle some more.

"Look, my uncle will be home soon. Just finish your tea and go" he ignored the giggles.

"Oh but we want to meet the hospitable Mr. Dursley. Surely he wouldn't mind if we stayed for dinner" Vicky twisted a tissue in mock agitation.

Harry gaped at her for a moment before burying his head in his hands and groaning.

"What do you want from me?" he asked in frustration.

Vicky seemed to give his question some serious consideration before replying.

"Promise to spend the weekend with us?" she set her condition.

Once again Harry was speechless before refusing vehemently. He tried to get the girls to leave him alone but they had set the condition and they wouldn't budge. After a lot of fruitless cajoling, Harry finally gave in to their demands.

And that is how Harry found himself becoming the reluctant friend to a group of hyper-active giggly girls with a she-devil for a leader.


	6. The Summer's Adventures

**Chapter 6: The Summer's Adventures**

The last few weeks had been interesting, Harry mused as he worked out in the gym. The girls and their friends had kept most of Harry's time occupied. They had done so many things together from playing stupid games, going on picnics, watching movies together to going to the disco. Harry had enjoyed himself on most occasions though there were some things he hadn't enjoyed. Like losing bets.

He remembered the first bet he had lost to Vicky cost him two weeks of washing dishes at her house in the mornings. It was Vicky's daily chore to wash the breakfast dishes and she'd made him do it. Harry had met Mr. and Mrs. Denver who were lecturers at the local university, Vicky's older sister Alice (she preferred to be called Ice) and her younger computer-game-crazy brother, Alex. They were all very nice even when Harry acted a little strange sometimes. It was just that sitting around the dining table in the kitchen with the family sometimes forcibly reminded Harry of the Weasleys and similar mornings at their breakfast table. Then he would remember their revolted expressions at the trial and everything inside him would freeze up. The Denvers didn't mind him zoning out. One of those mornings, Mrs. Denver had asked him why his hair was white and the others looked at him questioningly. Harry had stared at his hands on the table for a while before answering in a low voice with just one word. "Trauma!" His voice and expression had been enough to warn off the others not to ask anything else and they had respected his privacy.

Harry spent a lot of time at the Denvers'. Their little group spent some afternoons watching movies there. One afternoon Harry had gone to fetch the popcorn from the kitchen but stopped when he re-entered the living room. "What is wrong with this picture?" he'd mused out loud seeing the girls sprawled around the room. It had taken him a moment to figure it out. He was the only guy there. The situation had seriously freaked him out and the next time the girls had invited him, he had been assured that Jake and Robb would be there too. Seeing the teenagers 'wasting' sooo much of their time watching movies, Mr. and Mrs. Denver had insisted they all enroll for some of the short courses offered at the U for the community. Harry had been skeptical at first but he had enjoyed himself and learned a lot in courses such as 'Body Language 101', 'Graphology: The art of analyzing handwriting' and 'Persuasion Power: Dealing with People'.

Harry had learnt a lot out of classes too. It was amazing how much you could learn if you were driven enough. Harry had watched the personal trainers at Exizt deal with difficult and complaining customers with an unwavering smile. He had watched the girls shopping for outfits, how they bargained on the sales items, how they manipulated him and the other boys into going with them and how they dealt with unwanted attention from some of the boys at the mall. But the disco night had been the biggest eye-opener.

Harry hadn't been too comfortable with the idea but decided he'd just go for the experience. And boy what an experience it had been. His hair had been considered some funky new style and drew attention all night long. Harry turned out to be a surprisingly good dancer once Vicky had managed to coax him onto the dance floor and then he had to spent a good hour dancing with the girls. When he'd taken a break, he'd noticed Ice with a group of friends on the opposite side of the dance floor. Vicky had pointed out some other friends too. There had been one guy who had caught almost everyone's attention when he entered. Vicky explained that he worked as a stripper at the club for the three a.m. shows which they sadly wouldn't be watching. That gorgeous creature had moved with such a catlike grace, his every move mesmerizing. He had been wearing a sleeveless black sequined top that glittered with every movement and a pair of enticing leather pants. He had joined a girl at one of the tables and even danced with her later. He had gotten a great deal of catcalls and some loud and rude offers that he had silenced with a look. Harry had to admire his style, how he commanded respect and obedience despite working as a stripper. Harry didn't doubt that if it hadn't been for the man's attitude, the girls and even some of the guys wouldn't have kept their hands to themselves. Harry himself had suffered that kind of attention. He had been completely unprepared to be shoved against a dark corner by one of the 'bad girls' in a tight outfit and wild makeup. Never would he forget the suggestive things she had whispered in his ears as she ran her fingers over his slightly-muscled torso, her tongue darting out to flick over his ear. Vicky had effectively put an end to that by flinging some scathing remarks at her before dragging Harry away. Harry thought she was jealous. Sometimes she did act rather possessively towards him. It had been fun. They had gone back a few more times. Harry had kept his eyes on the male stripper whenever he saw him and though he wouldn't admit it to anyone else, he had taken to practicing the man's style. Hey, if it helped keep the reporters at bay, he'd be willing to try anything.

And then there was Vicky. She had taught him a great deal all by herself. She had seemed like a fun-loving child at first but Harry soon realized that she was anything but. Harry remembered one day when they had just newly become friends, he had been in the park with them, sitting in his usual place on the wooden planks, feet dangling a few inches above the grass. The girls had been chatting and the topic of back-stabbing best friends had come up. Harry hadn't heard much after that. His mind had returned to the painful memories his ex-best friends had given him. Thanks to the dementors, those were some of the clearest memories he had. Ron burning his things in the dorm, Hermione crying silently as he was shoved outside the school gates. He had held on to a sliver of hope, trusting Hermione's logic to come to his rescue. He had thought she would know he hadn't been the one responsible for all the deaths, just like she had known he hadn't put his own name in the Goblet. The first day of the trials she had avoided his gaze, focusing on the trial while Ron had glared venomously every time Harry had looked at Hermione. But as the trial progressed, she had turned against him. Mad-Eye Moody or rather Barty Crouch had presented all the evidence on how Harry had cheated right from the First Task. Ludo Bagman had testified that 'Harry had tricked him into betting on Harry to win the Tournament and planned to cheat Bagman out of all his money' in hopes that the court would somehow take care of the goblins who were after him to get their money. And somewhere far away, Voldemort had learnt of his link to Harry through the scar from Wormtail's description of the events of Harry's First Year at Hogwarts. Voldemort hadn't wasted a moment. He had worked complex magic to gain as much control over Harry's mind as he could, resulting in Harry saying some damning things during the trial. Harry had tried to fight the dark magic and the pain in his scar, he had tried to tell Dumbledore and the Weasleys and Hermione but no one listened to his pleas. He had been unable to find a way to stop Voldemort, unable to research a way to block the link since he didn't have any friends or any books. And his _best-friends'_ testimony had only helped make the case stronger against him, he thought bitterly.

He was so lost in those dark memories that he forgot where he was. So lost that he hadn't heard the girls talking to him. And then Vicky had told the others she knew exactly how to snap him out of it. She had marched over to where Harry was sitting, grabbed his face firmly with both hands and kissed him thoroughly. Harry had been jolted out of his memories, so surprised to find himself being kissed for the first time that he hadn't been able to move or think until Vicky had finally released him. He had stared at her openmouthed until the girls' laughter had caused him to flush and snap his mouth shut. Vicky had licked her lips, staring at him thoughtfully then announced "You taste good!" which had made the girls giggle again. Harry had attempted to stare menacingly at the laughing girls but the effect was spoiled by his flushed face and deciding there was nothing for it, he had escaped.

Harry's fitness program had gone much better than expected. He now had more fit body and a respectable height thanks to his grueling workouts and carefully planned diet. He had pushed himself pretty hard even when Ashley had told him to take a break or call it a day, knowing that a strong body and good height were essential for an intimidating presence. As the holidays were coming close to an end, Harry decided to add the finishing touches to his transformation by getting a tan. So he planned a beach vacation for the three weeks before he had to return to Hogwarts. When he told his group of 'friends', they had been disappointed that he was leaving but happy for him all the same. The mention of the beach and a tan had brought on another long discussion about Harry's so-called carnal appetites. The girls never tired of teasing him about that stupid priority quiz result. Vicky remained pretty quiet for a while before snapping her fingers and dashing off to call her dad. The next day Vicky dragged Harry to her house where everyone was having breakfast. Just when he thought he would finally be getting away from Vicky's amorous assaults, she announced that the family would be joining Harry for the vacation. Vicky's family had been planning a vacation since her dad's promotion and moving into the big house in this neighborhood but they couldn't agree on where to go. Now they had decided that Harry had the right idea and wouldn't it be fun if they all went together? Harry really couldn't see any way out of the arrangement and he knew that they meant well, but he still tried all the feeble protests before reluctantly giving his flight number and hotel reservations to Mr. Denver.

So here he was, taking a final swim at the large Exizt swimming pool the evening before his flight. Ashley had given him all the instructions on maintaining his form and fitness. He had finished buying all the clothes he'd need, visiting the boutique with Ashley the week before and all the times the girls had taken him to the mall and talked him into buying some leather and denim things as well as sporty branded outfits. The Dursleys were still too freaked out by him to do much more than grunt or sniff when he'd told them he was going off. He had said his good-byes to all the people he had gotten to know over the summer and only one person was left. He wanted to thank Ashley for all that she had done. She was busy with a phone-call just now but he knew she'd have time for a chat since the place was almost empty. She was the only person he'd told about Azkaban and everything and he was grateful for her silent support. She hadn't asked any more questions since the day he'd first told her even when he could sense that she wondered about some things. She also had the uncanny ability to sense his moods and she would plan jogging or kickboxing on the mornings when he showed up after suffering heavy nightmares. Harry climbed out of the swimming pool and picked up his bathrobe which was lying near the glass panel that separated the swimming pool from the gym. Ashley approached him as he was busy tying the sash.

"Ashley!" Harry grinned as he looked up and saw her.

"You've come to say goodbye?" she asked as she came closer to him. She looked sad but serene.

"Yeah! I...I wanted to thank you for all...." Harry glanced down not knowing how to form the words to thank her. He didn't notice how close she had come.

"For all the things I have done? But I haven't done anything" she said coming even closer.

"You've done so much, Ashley. You've completely changed me" Harry said earnestly.

He was caught by surprise when she hugged him fiercely.

"Goodbye Harry. It was nice knowing you" she smiled sadly, a single tear escaping her eyes before she turned around and walked away.

He wanted to go after her, tell her he'd probably be back next year but he decided to let it go. Instead he headed for the changing rooms, strangely at peace with everything. He would miss her.

Harry picked up his bag and left Exizt, pausing at the huge gates to take a final look. And then he was off to his final night of sleeping at the Dursleys. This time tomorrow, he would be on a flight to a beach paradise.


	7. Diagon Alley

**Chapter 7: Diagon Alley**

It was an owl tapping on his window that woke Harry on the dawn of Saturday. He would be on his way to two weeks of beach vacation this evening. Harry rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he walked over to open his window. The aged but healthy owl that flew in reminded him of Errol before he quickly diverted his thoughts to the letter it was carrying. The envelope had the Hogwarts seal on it. Of course, it was the customary letter with the list of books for the upcoming term. Harry opened it curiously wondering which year's list he would have. He found an official letter from the Deputy Headmistress, Minerva McGonagall. The letter started off with an official apology for his expulsion and continued with his re-acceptance into Hogwarts and some startling news. He was to join the Sixth Year as he should have been but he would also be receiving extra classes in the evenings with each teacher to catch up with his Fifth Year work. At the end of the year, he would be sitting for both the OWLs and Sixth Year finals and the teachers would do their best to help him through this. Harry grimaced as he imagined spending all of his time studying, not to mention the tete-a-tete that he was going to be practically forced to have with _all _the teachers. It wasn't fair, but then again he was way past expecting these people to be fair.

Harry put the letter down and picked up the two lists of books he was expected to buy. Now where was he going to get his books? He would rather volunteer to be Dudley and gang's punching bag for the day than go to buy his books at Flourish & Blotts. He would never forget the humiliation he suffered for as long as he lived. He would just have to get them some other way. He might be able to buy second-hand books from the seniors at Hogwarts, though the notion didn't much appeal to him. Or he could just go to classes empty-handed and let the teachers do something about it. Harry stuffed away the offending letter and went back to sleep, he probably wouldn't get much sleep on the plane since it was his first time traveling by air. It probably wasn't anything like flying on a broomstick, he thought dispiritedly. He was going to miss Quidditch....He abruptly halted those thoughts before they turned to Gryffindor and a Firebolt and went back to sleep.

Harry was packing his books late in the morning when the phone rang. A moment later, his whale of a cousin poked his head in and simply said "It's for you" before leaving.

Harry went downstairs wondering who it would be. It was a lady from the airlines and she was explaining that there was some kind of problem with Harry's payment. His bank account was blocked for some reason and he needed to sort it out urgently or he might miss the plane. Harry was very perplexed to hear this. He went back upstairs and hurriedly crammed away his books and other unpacked stuff so that if this matter took too long, he could just come and take his stuff immediately before going to the airport.

Harry finished his packing, and left for the bank. He got the now customary stares from the people there but one of the guys at the counters recognized him and took him to see the manager. Harry explained his problem and asked why it happened. After checking his records the bank manager, Mrs. Wuthright informed him about the temporary policy that had been put into action. Due to some fraud and safety risks the credit card limits for all card-holders had been reduced and they were informed by post about this change. They had sent a letter to Harry but addressed to Gringgots because that was how he had specified it. Apparently he had exceeded the limit on his credit card which caused his account to freeze. Harry handled all that was necessary at the bank but to his great disappointment, some of the matters needed Harry to get all the letters the bank had been sending to Harry.

Oh God this was such a mess! There were no Gringgots branches in Surrey to his knowledge. That meant he had to go to the much dreaded Diagon Alley branch of Gringgots in London and get back to sort it out all before his evening flight. He thought about taking a bus from Surrey to London but that was risky since he wasn't familiar with London and what time the buses left and arrived. Also if the matter took a long time, he wouldn't be able to get back for his flight. There was nothing for it. He would have to take the knight bus to London. Harry sighed as he looked around the empty street he was currently in. It was going to be unpleasant to ride the bus but so would be Diagon Alley. He would have to learn to live with this sooner or later, so just go for it. He stood at the sidewalk and raised his right arm, making a sharp move with his wrist and waited to hear the familiar bang and the trash cans hurriedly jumping out of the way.

Harry didn't have to wait long. The purple-colored vehicle came to a screeching halt too close to him and same old Stan Shunpike was there. He took one look at Harry and forget his well rehearsed speech about the knight bus' qualities.

"Look, I have to go to Diagon Alley and back today. I don't have any wizard money with me but I'm going to Gringgots now. Can I pay for the ticket on the return journey or would you accept muggle money?" Harry asked in a very businesslike manner. He did not want to spend the next hour standing on the sidewalk under the scorching sun waiting for Stan and the God-awful driver to regain their wits and start to blubber apologies at a painstakingly slow rate.

"Well, what's it going to be?" he asked impatiently.

"Uhhh....uhmm....sure, why don't you pay later, Mr. Harry Potter sir?" Stan sniveled dazedly in a very Dobby-like manner.

Harry climbed the three stairs into the bus, ignored the driver's poor attempt at making a sound, walked to the back and climbed the weird staircase to the top, settling at the far end from the half-sleeping old wizard. Once the bus was moving again, Stan poked his head up the stairs. Harry saw him and glared so fiercely that the poor bloke went right back downstairs and didn't come back up until they reached London.

Harry reached London fairly quickly having spent the whole way mentally preparing himself for what was to come. He went through all the different things he had learnt during the summer and tried his best to build a mental shield against the memories. He knew Diagon Alley would be full of people since it was Saturday and almost the end of holidays. He wouldn't let them affect him, he thought resolutely as he turned the corner and approached the Leaky Cauldron. He took a moment to breathe deeply before entering. As expected all conversation and activity seized at his entrance. He swept everyone with a cool gaze seeing some of them flinch and look away. Then he walked straight across the place with a confident stride. No one tried to speak to him or stop him. Tom the innkeeper was the only one to follow him outside the back door.

"Hello Harry" was all he said with a gentle smile as he tapped the bricks with his wand, opening the gateway for him.

"Thanks" he said before walking away.

As Harry strode down the busy street, the crowd parted like the red sea to make way for him. He kept a rigid posture, a confident and purposeful stride occasionally throwing a frosty and unwelcoming glance to the people around him who were whispering to each other. He knew his appearance drew attention as much as his unwanted fame. While everyone else was dressed in robes, he was dressed in a pair of jeans as white as his hair and a black long-sleeved sweatshirt with a white Nike checkmark at the back. The sleeves were pulled back up to his forearms, making his upper arms look bulky and revealing the big black sports watch he was wearing. As he neared Flourish & Blotts, Mr. Flourish came out looking around desperately. He must have heard Harry was there since he was looking around until his gaze settled on him. Harry's glare became icy as he looked at the man then deliberately looked away. He was about to pass Mr. Flourish when the old man grabbed hold of Harry's arm.

"Harry, please.....please listen to me. I need to tell you how sorr-"

"Shut up! How dare you touch me? Don't you ever speak to me again" Harry almost shouted yanking his arm away. All of his resolve to remain calm and cool flew out the window at this man's audacity. The nerve of him to even speak to Harry after what he had done. Harry was positively fuming as he walked before he gave in to temptation and hit the man. He quickened his stride, ignoring the man's hoarse pleas to come back and the other people who had stopped everything and were staring outright.

Harry entered Gringgots in a very bad mood but he tried to maintain civility with the goblins. The event had truly shaken him. He had done his very best to keep his mind off the past all summer but now being here, seeing these people again brought the pain back. The lengthy matters at Gringgots managed to calm Harry a bit but a little of his anger returned as he was coming out. Just let them try something. He wouldn't mind demonstrating his kickboxing skills to anyone who dared to treat him like a sulky child. The set of his jaw and the defensiveness in his movements seemed to give everyone a fair warning as most people gave him a wide breadth. Harry noticed that all the shopkeepers had come out again and were looking at him with much the same expressions as the day when he was first released. He noticed the astonishment on some faces at the vast difference in his height and looks.

Harry was giving two young witches an icy glare for giggling as they looked admiringly at him when he heard the scrunching sound of little paws running on the pebbled road. He realized what the sound was a micro-second before four paws latched onto his jeans. He turned around, only slightly surprised to find the two black kitten-like creatures at his feet. He might have thought they were kittens before but now he was almost certain they were cubs of some magical creature. They had grown to the size of a very large cat over the summer and their sharp claws gleamed in the sun. They were looking imploringly at him through their marble-bright eyes as they made that growling-purring sound. For a moment Harry was deeply tempted to pick them up and walk away. Then he remembered Hedwig's brutal death. He looked up to see Mr. Warsh standing in front of his shop, his expression blank save for the sorrow-filled eyes. No, he wouldn't subject himself to the pain of a pet's death again. He couldn't take the cubs. He would just have to walk away like he did before, Harry thought with a heavy heart. Truth be told he would have given anything to once again have the love and loyalty that he always sensed from Hedwig. But he turned around to walk away anyhow. Only this time the cubs had grown much more stronger and having been left by their human once before, they were prepared to fight to stay with him. Harry tried to wrench his leg away from their grasp but their claws held on firmly. He tried to move his leg in a jerking motion trying to remove them but they stayed. As Harry was twisting around, one of the cubs let go and boldly jumped higher digging the sharp claws into the fabric at Harry's calf. Now he was very much worried about the state of his jeans. Harry half bent to try to remove the cub when the other let go of his leg and jumped up to latch himself on Harry's upper arm. Harry had to crouch down before he lost his balance and the first cub took the opportunity to let go of his calf and jump to his shoulder. As Harry tried to brush him off, the other cub was left dangling from his forearm.

By now Harry was thoroughly frustrated with the stubborn cubs and the giggling group of witches who kept mumbling things like "Aw, how cute!" were beginning to get on his nerves. He scowled at Mr. Warsh.

"Get them away from me" he growled.

"I'm sorry I can't. They are magical creatures and they choose their own masters. Tigercats especially have been known to tear apart anything that tries to keep them away from their chosen human" he replied nodding towards the cubs.

"I Am Not Their Mast-" Harry was distracted by the sudden flash of pain at his neck.

He turned to the cub on his shoulder to notice it holding a paw with a little blood on the claws. The cub bent his head to lick at the wound he had just inflicted and Harry felt the pain fade away. At that moment the cub's honey-gold eyes began to glow. The glow turned to a bright light before returning to normal. The cub tilted his head slightly as it looked deep into Harry's eyes and Harry could swear he felt the contentment coming from the cub. The distraction was enough to give the other cub a chance to repeat his twin's actions. This time Harry felt the pain in his forearm and looking down, found three sharp claw-marks bleeding there. The second cub also bent his head and licked the scratches and the blood off. As Harry watched the scratches began to heal and the skin was left unbroken. The green eyes glowed with same intense light before fading back to their original color and the cub gave a pleased growl before letting go of Harry's arm and landing smoothly on the ground. Harry felt the side of his face licked gently before the golden eyed cub joined his brother on the ground. The tingling Harry had felt in the two wounds now seemed to be spreading through his veins. Harry was in shock because there was no mistaking it. He could distinctly feel two other sets of emotions beside his own.

"Now you are their master. They have bonded with you and they will follow you wherever you go. No barrier, magical or otherwise can keep them away from you and nothing can hide you from them" Mr. Warsh said almost matter-of-factly.

Harry was so astounded that he remained crouching there staring at the well-behaved cubs on the ground for a moment. Now, what was he supposed to do?

"No, I don't care what they just did. I'm not taking them with me. You can keep them" Harry threw back at the old wizard.

Apparently the cubs somehow sensed his rejection for Harry could feel their sadness. They growled softly at Harry as if pleading with him to accept them. It was too much. After feeling lonely and abandoned himself, he couldn't cope with two sets of similar emotions. He got up and began to walk away resolutely. He felt the cubs' fierce determination at the same time as he heard their little patter of paws following behind him. He stopped and turned around to scowl at them.

"Go Away" he yelled.

The cubs growled back but seemed unfazed by his words. They sat down on their back paws like good little cubs and got up to follow him the moment he turned his back. Harry was at his wits' end on what to do with them as he stood there with his back to the cubs and everyone staring. Maybe they wouldn't be able to get past the brick wall that separated Leaky Cauldron, he thought gazing at the barrier.

"No, sonny. Ye can't get rid of 'em like that. They're not called magical creatures for nothing. They will follow ye to Bermuda an back. Ye might as well take 'em home and save yerself the trouble" an old wizard with yellowed teeth snorted.

Harry scowled moodily at the man wondering what he was going to do. He turned around to frown threateningly at Mr. Warsh again. He hated the man and he certainly didn't want to buy anything from him ever.

"I can't do anything. The only way not to take them is if you would be willing to kill them. They won't try to stop you if you try to kill them. There is no other option" Mr. Warsh spread his hands. He didn't say anything about their price or giving them for free because he felt that would certainly make the young man explode.

"Tigercats don't eat catfood. You'll need to buy some of their feed until they are old enough to hunt" the lady who owned the apothecary informed Harry almost gleefully from the entrance of her shop.

"And you need to buy some toys to keep 'em busy" a short and plump wizard said from the door of a toyshop.

"And you need a charmed cage to keep the muggles from complaining when you take them anywhere" the wizard who owned a magical bags and boxes store informed him.

"And you need a proper rug for them to sleep on" Madam Malkin said timidly as she stared at the ground.

"And you need a book on Tigercats to know how to handle them" the young assistant at Flourish and Blotts said with a frown. Mr. Flourish was nowhere to be seen.

"I can't keep them. Tigercats aren't allowed as pets in Hogwarts" Harry spoke to no one in particular.

"I will get you a special pass. I'm the Head Boy this year. I know there is a mention in Hogwarts Rules Book about magical pets and special cases. I will get you the permission letter at King's Cross" a Ravenclaw prefect that Harry remembered from his Fourth Year offered smilingly.

Harry sighed in frustration at the cubs who just stared at him innocently. He did not want to go through this. He hated Diagon Alley. Before he had time to brood anymore, the wizard from the toyshop grabbed his arm and pulled him gently towards his shop explaining all the wonderful toys he had that the cubs would just love. God, these wizards were so pushy. He was quite aware of the huge crowd watching his every action. Yanking his arm away didn't work and since he didn't want a huge scene, Harry saw no other way but to go with the man. Harry sighed as the cubs followed him in and jumped and growled at the toys that were shown. He emerged a few moments later with a bag of toys and the lady from the opposite apothecary waved him over, pointing at a scoopful of something. There was nothing for it, he thought morosely as he marched over with the cubs dutifully following behind him. As an assistant was packing the feed, the lady asked Harry if he would like the Potions ingredients set for Sixth Year. Harry agreed and asked for the Fifth Year set too. The lady gave him a magically expanding bag with a light-weight charm free of charge. After that he had to buy a shrunk cage from the bag and boxes store. Harry found his hand grasped tightly by a distraught Madam Malkin when he stepped outside. She was sobbing pitifully as she begged for forgiveness for her heartless actions last year. Harry didn't have the heart to push her away and leave her sobbing in front of the curiously watching crowd so with a heavy heart he let her drag him to her own shop. She wiped away the tears and sniffled occasionally as she directed her assistant to wrap up a specially made rug. Then she smiled hesitantly as she pulled Harry to the measuring table, saying she would pack his Hogwarts robes too so he won't have to trouble himself again. He bought the things and paid the money without looking directly at her or saying much. He hadn't forgiven her actions, he didn't know if he ever could.

Harry was glad he had thought of taking a large amount of galleons out of Gringgots. He had thought to buy some of his stuff in Hogsmeade and pay for the Knight bus with it. He was once again amazed by the way the wizards did things differently. Pet's toys in a toyshop, cages in a box shop, rugs in a robes shop, he shook his head. He saw Mr. Warsh standing in front of his store watching him silently and headed over there. He went to the counter of the shop, asked how much the cubs cost, paid the amount and walked out. It would be a long time before he could bring himself to forgive the wizard who had taken away the last source of support in his dark days. Mr. Warsh seemed to realize this and made no attempt to stall or stop him. He just watched the retreating figure with sad eyes, praying that the young man find some peace and happiness in his future.

Harry was passing Ollivanders when old Mr. Ollivander stepped out and waved his hand at him. His eyes were as bright and unnerving as Harry remembered them.

"Mr. Potter, I have been told you are in need of a new wand? Come in and bring the cubs too" the old man beckoned with his aging hands.

Harry followed the old man inside the musty old shop, the cubs walking behind him. Old Ollivanders told him that he had received an owl from Dumbledore about getting Harry a new wand. Since Harry was discovered to be a Parselmouth, Ollivanders had sent news to his associates overseas and had a special wand made for Harry. Being a Parselmouth came in handy in performing some very rare and powerful spells and his natural magic could be enhanced with the right wand. The wand that he handed to Harry was black in color. He explained that the core was a scale taken from a queen hydra and the wood had veins of melted basilisk fang running from top to bottom to add extra power to all his spells. As Harry held the 14 inches long wand, he felt a sense of rightness and a tingle of magic like recognition. Whether it was the wand recognizing its master or his magic recognizing its true channel, he could not say.

Harry left Ollivanders with his new wand in its sheath. He saw the assistant of Flourish & Blotts staring straight at him but ignored the young man. There was no way he would ever forget or forgive the incident from last year. He was just turning his back to the bookstore and heading for the Leaky Cauldron when the young wizard came over and grabbed Harry's arm in a tight grip. Harry narrowed his eyes threateningly at him but he remained unfazed.

"Let go of me" he growled but the older boy only tightened his grip.

"No, you are coming with me" the assistant announced.

Harry stared at him as if he had lost his mind before beginning to struggle in earnest. He was not going anywhere near the bookstore and no one was going to make him. The cubs were growling menacingly at the taller boy who seemed to be threatening their human.

"I'm not going to hurt him" the boy told the two cubs who were crouching in an attack position.

Despite his resolve Harry found himself being dragged forcefully towards the shop. He protested and fought him but the other seemed almost angry as he ignored all of Harry's attempts and dragged him into the empty bookstore.

"Look at him" he said in a low voice pushing Harry well into the shop before releasing his arm. Harry looked where the boy was pointing to see Mr. Flourish sitting behind a desk, shaking silently with his head buried in his hands. Silent tears were coursing down his face.

"He is my father. He has always lived his life proudly, never harming anyone intentionally. It was what he had taught all of us too. He was very fond of all his children but Timmy was his favorite. Timmy was in his Second Year when you were in Fourth Year. That day when the Tournament was going on in Hogwarts and so many people died because of the dark curse, my youngest brother, Timmy died too. Dad was devastated. He didn't eat for days. When you came here all he saw was his youngest son's murderer. He wanted revenge, he wanted to hurt you like you had hurt him. Surely you of all people should understand that. You lost your parents too" the older boy pleaded for understanding.

"Timmy is gone forever. Our family will never be the same again. We don't want to lose Dad too. He is truly sorry. He hasn't been eating or sleeping properly since the day we found out about your innocence. He spends all the nights sitting by the window and he is lost in horrible thoughts all day long. He can't forgive himself until you forgive him. Please, please talk to him. Please tell him you forgive him. We are very sorry about what happened. Please don't hold it against Dad. He will slowly fade away if he keeps this up" the boy begged Harry as his own eyes clouded with tears.

Harry looked from the boy to his father. It was very hard to maintain his anger or distance when he saw how truly sorry they were. He found the pain and bitterness from the memory of his humiliation fading away against his will. There was no other choice. He didn't want to go on his vacation with the guilt of this family's suffering on his conscience. Yes, he was doing this for purely selfish reasons. He breathed deeply before approaching the desk as the boy stayed back and watched him go.

"I need a book on caring for Tigercats" he announced neutrally pretending not to notice anything amiss.

Mr. Flourish looked up, then wiped at his eyes to see better. He stared at Harry for a full minute before coming to his senses. And then he was jumping out of his seat, blubbering half-sentences, telling his son to get this book and that, all the while wiping away at his face. A small smile appeared on his face as he packed two books on Tigercats as well as the Fifth and the Sixth Year texts and stationary. He kept looking warily at Harry from time to time half-expecting him to turn around and leave. As Mr. Flourish packed the stationary and took the money Harry offered, he looked at Harry then back down again hesitating.

"Mr. Potter…..Harry, I am so sorry….for what I…..I can never forgive myself, I was so grossly unfair…..I know I can never make it up to you, but….I" Harry held up his hand trying his best to smile though it still came a bit as a grimace before disappearing entirely.

"I know what happened. It's in the past. It doesn't matter anymore" Harry lied through his teeth avoiding Mr. Flourish's eyes. He knew it would be a long time before he would get over what happened but he didn't want to feel bad for making the old man suffer from guilt. When he looked up he saw that the old man wasn't fooled but he nodded acceptingly. Mr. Flourish knew further apologizing was pointless. He would always regret hurting this brave young man so terribly, he just hoped someday Harry would heal from all this.

Finally Harry left Diagon Alley with a relieved sigh and made his way outside the inn to hail the Knight bus and pay for his two-way ticket. Harry tucked his magical bag on the seat beside him when he sat down and the cubs climbed after him. He stroked the green eyed cub's fur making him purr contentedly as the other cub settled in his lap. He would have to name them. Harry was glad that the lady at the apothecary had given him the tonic that would disguise the cubs as cats to all muggles' eyes. He fed them a little of it in one of the brand new bowls and they drank it up. It looked like he would make it in time for his flight after all.

Harry made it to Surrey in record time. He called Vicky's home to inform her that he was leaving for the airport early to sort out his ticket problems before collecting his luggage from the Dursleys'. He left the house without so much as a backward glance, the cubs following behind him occasionally stopping to sniff at something but chasing after Harry when he got too far. He stopped by the bank to finalize the matters then took a cab to the airport. The rest of his time was taken up with a late lunch, handling the ticket payment and arranging for the unexpected pets to be taken with him. He boarded the plane with the Denvers who must have noticed his troubled thoughts since they left him alone except giving him concerned looks from time to time. They arrived at the island resort late next morning. They checked in at their luxurious hotel, Harry explaining about his two pets and settling the extra payment for keeping them. He spent some time resting in the huge hotel room before having lunch at the restaurant and hitting the beach.


	8. His Summer Vacation

A/N: Thanx for the pointers in your reviews. The London-next-door-to-Surrey and met-Ollivanders-at-the-Wand-weighing-ceremony errors have been fixed. You were right, the beach scene was rushed. I've redone it in this chapter, followed by the Hermione confrontation. A bit light-heartedness before the angst. Warning: Slightly violent/bloody scene on the beach. The queasy types are advised to put down whatever food you're eating.

Kail Blade: I began laughing out loud when I read your review. You were among those who asked what Harry's nickname was. I swear I had this nickname picked out for him months ago...honest! But since this is such a coincidence, I dedicate this to you. Read on, to find out Harry's nickname. ; D

Right, can't say I didn't expect the flames. Thanx all the same. The flames were what put me off writing and updating for so long. So here's a note for the reviewers who have a few complaints. Skip it if you didn't review or at least didn't criticize. 

First off, I'm not writing facts and reality here. If Harry seems like the whitest character on ffnet then good because he **is** too good to be true. Becoming an orphan at age one, being brought up by condescending, snobby relatives who don't have an ounce of affection for you, growing up without friends thanks to your cousin and his gang of bullies, in _reality_ will produce a cold-blooded criminal with a personality disorder or two, **not** the savior of the world with a simple characteristic like 'mistrust of authority figures'. **That's** reality. 

Yes, he's also forgiving and a chivalrous gentleman (in your words: let's himself be pushed around). And though he is angry at everyone for sending him to Azkaban, he wouldn't do it to them out of revenge if the situation was reversed. 

Harry is not gonna go to Hogwarts, get himself expelled, buy a mansion in cloudy, stormy Transylvania and sit sulking in his castle all the time, coming out occasionally to blast to pieces any owls that might be flying too close to his castle. Even if that may seem more realistic to some of you. For my more bloodthirsty reviewers, I recommend you take a look at 'New World's Order' by World for a more unforgiving and unbending Harry. I honestly think you'll like it. 

And how about all the other people? They aren't evil. Putting him in Azkaban was a grave mistake on their part, but that was all it was, a mistake. Yes of course, I'm very mad at Hermione and Black and the Weasleys too since they should've known better. And trust me, Harry's gonna torture them a great deal for their betrayal. But the anger has to be released sometime. See, I was mad at the people who flamed me, I had to re-do this A/N to make it less err...explosive. Now that I've finished, I'm no longer mad at those who flamed me for chapter 7. What would be the point of staying mad? Only unhealthy for me, my uhh.._flamers_ probably still think they are right and I'm wrong. 

****

Chapter 8: His Beach Vacation

Harry's vacation started out beautifully. All day long, he was at the beach sunbathing, swimming, having fun. He received the stares and attention as expected but over the summer he had gotten used to it. There was the tourist lady who was hovering around, taking pictures of anything that moved when Harry was building a sandcastle with Alex and though he glared at her a few times, he had a sneaking suspicion that she had taken a shot of him and the sandcastle. Also, he couldn't keep the tigercats cooped up in the hotel room the whole time. Everytime he took them out with him, females of all ages took it as permission to come up to him and interrupt whatever he was doing. 

"Ooh, look at those cats! Aren't they just _adorable_?" (a young girl in a candy-pink bathing suit)

or "Isn't that sweet...such well behaved kitties! Marching after him like that..." (an old lady in the lobby)

or even "Oh what sexy little felines. Don't they just make you go Grrr?" 

"They are males. Guys don't appreciate such comments" Harry replied dryly to the dark-haired beauty who was a good deal older than him and made the breathy comment while eyeing him rather than the cubs. 

After that scary encounter Harry decided it was safer to take the cubs out only very early in the morning or late at night. His tan was coming along nicely too. He was glad he had asked the blonde lifeguard who was the hotel receptionist's boyfriend on sun-tanning tips the morning after he arrived, or else he'd most likely be sporting the pink sun-burnt look that Vicky and Alex had gotten for some reason. Harry spent most of his time on the beach in white boxer shorts. As he became more tanned, the color contrast was great. When he wanted to even out his tan over his whole body, he preferred to go to the more secluded area along the beach. It was a tiny hill, more like higher land above the sandy beach that was covered by a forest. He took the cubs with him everytime in case there were any wild animals and spent the day at the small plant-free piece of higher ground that overlooked the beach even as it was protected from view from below. It was perfect and he would have continued to go there if it wasn't for that highly-embarrassing event. Damn interfering, spying girls!

His vacation was made all the more enjoyable when he made friends with the Bay Ghosts. Contrary to the nickname given by the locals, the Ghosts were actually a group of youngsters who had grown up in the area. They were pretty popular with the locals as well as the vacationers. They consisted of some fine-looking young men but even those who weren't much of a looker had a great tan and muscles due to their part-time jobs as fishermen. The Ghosts were invited to all the barbecues, parties and such. Unfortunately the fame and admiration they received had made them a tad big-headed. 

One morning when Harry was jogging on the beach, he noticed the Ghosts walking together, sometimes whispering to each other before looking around suspiciously. Intrigued by their behavior, Harry watched them. They walked over to where two boys were sitting on beach towels and invited the two boys to join them for a game. The two boys looked very flattered to be asked to join the good-looking group and instantly agreed. They began to play a game of beach volleyball with the boys and lots of people came to watch. But the group of boys were being unfair and rough with the two boys They were constantly pushed this way and that and ended up falling many times resulting in the crowd laughing at them. Harry felt sorry for the two boys from the place he was sitting away from the crowd. Once the brutal game ended and the crowd began to melt, Harry crept close enough to hear the group tell the two boys to stay away from their girlfriends. Turned out the two boys had been a bit friendly with some girls. All the guys generally received such behavior if they tried to be over-friendly with their girlfriends or sisters. Some boys got such treatment even if the girl involved was not one of their girlfriends but just a girl they had a crush on. This bullying and their arrogance was the only flaw in the otherwise good-natured group of boys.

It was a good thing he witnessed that incident remaining unseen himself. Harry was getting a lot of female attention himself. It was probably his cool and uncaring attitude to whatever comments thrown his way about his weird hair. He didn't try to make any new friends, content on sunbathing and sometimes playing games with the Denver kids. Harry's third day on the beach started with the same group of handsome bullies approaching him. They invited him to go surfing with them. He declined, telling them he couldn't surf with a cool smile. They offered to teach but he refused. They kept trying to get him to join them and he kept refusing. The other teenagers around them were amazed by this. Everyone wanted to join that popular group of boys except Harry. Apparently his hair wasn't the only thing that was weird about him. 

"Hey, what's wrong with you? We're offering to teach you to surf and you refuse us? Do you even know who we are? Ask anyone, we're the best surfers on this beach" one dark-skinned youth declared.

"Thank you. That's very kind of you. I'm not interested" Harry's reply was curt.

"Like hell you aren't. When we say we're gonna teach you surfing, **that means** _we're gonna teach you surfing_" the second tallest guy spat. 

"Look I said I don't wanna learn surfing so just leave me alone, okay?" Harry didn't retreat an inch though the boy was nose to nose with him, glaring fiercely. 

"How dare you speak to Adam like that, punk? You're gonna pay for that" another boy who was a larger version of the first clenched his fist, rushing straight at Harry. 

Harry who had foreseen a fight was ready for the attack. Eventhough he hadn't learnt any martial arts, his kickboxing came in handy as the older and bigger boy drove him into the sand. The other boys kept to the sides, shouting encouragement for their friend while they kept a lookout for any interfering adults. By then, there was a huge group had gathered to watch. Harry and the boy were rolling around in the sand, each trying to gain the upper hand. Harry already had a bloodied nose and mouth and had taken several punched that would bloom into bruises later. But he was proud to say that his opponent would also be sporting a black-eye and probably a bruise and a sore jaw in the face alone. Harry knew he wouldn't be able to beat the stronger boy, but he was going to give it all he had. And this way at least he got to work out his frustration at the nightmare he had the night before starring his damned godfather.

He tried to lift the boy's arm away as he was sitting straddled on Harry, pushing his face sideways into the sand. Since he was facing the hotel rather than the beach, he saw his two tigercat cubs a second before they had emerged from behind the legs of the spectators and launched themselves on his attacker. In a flash, they leapt onto the boy with fierce growls, using their sharp claws to dig sharply into his face and uncovered torso. 

With a cry of pain, the boy fell off Harry and hit the sand, the cubs keeping their claws latched firmly into his flesh. Harry raised himself on his elbows as he shouted.

"No, stop! Siyaa! Tawreek! STOP!" Harry scrambled over to where the boy was lying, his hand covering his face to protect it from the cubs.

By the time Harry had managed to grab hold of each cub and pulled them away, the cubs had managed to sink their razor-sharp fangs into the 'enemy' too. 

"Bad cats! Very, very bad cats" Harry scolded the cubs absently as he watched in horror the blood pouring out of the wounds. The formerly noisy crowd was deathly silent and even the boy's friends were standing and staring in shock. The cubs were still squirming to try and escape Harry's hold so that they could tear the boy into proper pieces. Anyone who attacked their human had to be taught a lesson. 

Harry growled a few words to his tigercats and released them once he was sure they would behave. Harry once again crawled closer to the bleeding boy. The crowd was beginning to thin out but the boy's friends were still frozen in their places. 

"Here, let me look at that" Harry pried his fingers away gently. The boy was still in shock and didn't protest. 

"Doesn't look that bad. You just need some healing cream but no bandage. I have the cream in my hotel room. Why don't you let me help you up and we'll go to my room" Harry suggested keeping his tone firm.

He mustn't panic. He had read that Tigercats' fangs could produce a special kind of poison in a fight. By then the other boys had regained their senses. 

"Hold it! Get away from him. Don't touch him. Haven't you done enough? Look at the wounds....the bleeding won't stop. We need to get him to a doctor" the boy who resembled the injured youth went from sounding angry to sounding panicked. 

Harry did some fast thinking. If he didn't apply the magical healing cream that he had gotten at the apothecary, the poison might spread in his body. He wasn't sure how much damage that would cause. If they took him to a doctor or hospital, questions would arise not to mention that the muggles wouldn't be able to do anything to help him. It was after all a magical wound. He had no idea where to find any wizards on this island, even if there were any which he doubted since he hadn't been pestered by anyone who knew him so far. He would have to convince the boys to do as he said at whatever cost. 

"Look, these aren't your everyday cats. Can't you tell from your wounds? House cats don't have such sharp fangs, do they? I have a healing cream specially made for such wounds. I don't think you can find the right medicine anywhere else so soon. So, why don't you do something smart for once in your lifetime and follow me" Harry suggested keeping his voice cool and uncaring.

"No way! He's bluffing Adam. We can't trust him. He's probably gonna give something poisonous or dangerous" one of the other guys spoke up.

"Whatever! I don't care. I was only trying to help. If you don't trust me, fine. Go take him to a doctor. Once this guy has lost enough blood and you're told the doctor can't help you and needs more time, you can come and find me in room 314 at the hotel. Come on, guys" Harry had gotten up as he said this and began walking away, motioning for the cubs to follow him. He just hoped this ploy worked.

"Wait a minute. I think we should go with him guys. It can't hurt. And if he tries anything, well then there are nine of us against him and his weird cats. Think it shouldn't be too hard to beat him into a pulp" another boy spoke up. 

There were a few more protests and arguments but in the end the boy called Adam supported the injured Jimmy and they followed Harry and the cubs back to the hotel. Harry took the lot of them back to his room and helped Jimmy wash away the blood before getting him to sit on the bed and applying the healing cream. He covered the scratched completely with the greenish cream and told the boy to stay put for a couple of hours. Harry ordered the cubs back into their cage to put the boys at ease. He also picked up the phone and ordered some refreshments. Truth be told, he was feeling a bit guilty about the whole incident. He knew it wasn't his fault, that the guys had come looking for trouble and attacked him but he felt bad all the same. Once the wound had been taken care of and Jimmy was stretched out on the bed, the other boys took a look around the huge room. They particularly loved the gigantic indoor theatre system. The boys ended up spending a couple hours in Harry's room. By the end, some of them had become more friendly with Harry while some still held back. They were impressed by the viscous but obedient cubs and how they seemed to understand Harry's orders. They questioned Harry on his strange fighting cats and he told them some believable answers about a species of cats found in the savanna. The boys told him about their nickname and general history. 

Over the next few days, Harry met the Bay Ghosts a few more times and one day, he finally agreed to let them teach him surfing after they had sworn on their Ghostliness that it wasn't a prank. Harry showed an uncanny talent for surfing and mastered it in no time. Pretty soon, Harry was a decent surfer and even accidentally discovered a surfing trick which made the boys give him a nickname. After being dared by Adam to take on the enormous white wave, Harry swam out on his surfboard and caught it. He was surfing in the mouth of the wave as half of the foaming white water was rolling, forming a tunnel on his right as he surfed towards the left. As many people on the shore watched Harry was swallowed into the tunnel of the water. But instead of being washed down and heading for the beach, Harry disappeared for a few seconds. Harry then emerged on top of the wave, still standing on his surfboard and rode the wave for a few moments longer before the waved reached the shore, with Harry still standing gracefully and then jumping off into knee deep water.

Everyone was talking about that trick. It was as if he had sliced the wave when he was in the tunnel of water and came out behind the wave before riding it again. It earned him the nickname of 'Blade' as in the surfer who sliced the water. Harry managed to pull off the trick a few more times whenever there was a huge white wave but he did fail once or twice. The Bay Ghosts were pretty impressed and surprised Harry one day with a gift. It was a pure white surfboard with _Blade _written on it in dark silver.

He was invited to many barbecues and parties throughout his stay and it would have been the perfect vacation if it weren't for that one unwanted, unwelcome incident. It was just too bad that Harry had to run into none other than Hermione Granger on the island.

Harry had been invited by the Denvers to go on an island tour program hosted by one of the other major hotels. They had gone to that hotel for lunch together. Mr. Denver had to make a phone-call back to Surrey so they were all in the lobby. Harry was standing on the other side of the lobby near the huge windows when he caught sight of her. She had just entered the lobby, face downcast and a slumping posture. She raised her head and looked straight at Harry. 

"Ha.....H-Harry?" her voice barely carried over the distance. She remained standing there in shock for a moment. Harry's eyes had turned to emerald ice at the sight of her. She might not be used to seeing him but he had seen her over and over again while he was in Azkaban. Even now she appeared frequently in his nightmares. She was an unwelcome sight to him. Harry turned his back on her, crossing his arms over his chest. He remembered the cruel things she had said to him a year ago and he wasn't likely to forget it anytime soon. The dementors had pounded it into his head.

"Harry?" her voice had become slightly stronger as he heard the sound of her approaching footsteps. 

God, why now? He would have had to deal with her at Hogwarts anyway. Why couldn't he just enjoy the last days of his vacation in peace?

"Harry, please....please, I need to talk to you" her voice was right behind him now. 

"And what is it that you'd like to say to me?" Harry's voice was icy as he turned to face his ex-bestfriend. 

".....H-Harry......I-I.....I..." she faltered at his glare.

"Well? I haven't got all day!" Harry would have left but he found the new speechless Miss Know-it-all coldly satisfying. 

"Harry, please don't be like this. I'm so sorry. I know it was a terrible mistake and I know I don't deserve to be forgiven but-"

"But What? But you want me to forgive you anyway, is that it?" Harry didn't realize that he was shouting.

"N-No, of course not. I understand that you are angry, it's just that-" Hermione tried to calm him.

"You _understand_? You UNDERSTAND? What do you _understand_? Do you understand that I spent a year in pure _hell_? Is that what you understand? Or do you understand that you had a huge part in sending me there? Do you understand _that_?" Harry was no longer aware of his surroundings. His whole attention was focused on this girl for whom he would have gladly laid down and died just a year ago. This girl who had been his family, his friend, his companion. This girl who had turned her back on him just like everyone else.

"Harry, I'm sorry, I'm so sorry.." The tears she had been trying her best to hold back now flowed freely.

"Oh, so now you're _sorry_. And what am I supposed to do? Fall at your feet with gratitude because you're sorry? Beg you to be my friend again? Does your being sorry make everything alright? DOES IT?" Harry was unconsciously shaking the shorter girl by her shoulders as her tears turned into wracking sobs.

N...No, No Harry-"

"SHUT UP! Don't you dare say my name again! You certainly couldn't bring yourself to call me Harry last year. It was Potter this and Potter that when you were testifying against me in court. Why is it Harry now? Because I'm innocent? But I was innocent then too. Why didn't you realize that? WHY DIDN'T YOU? Miss Bookworm Know-it-all, why didn't you use that great intellect of yours to figure out that I was innocent?" Harry didn't realize when his icy accusations turned into personal agony. 

He had sworn to leave behind all those dreadful feelings when he left Azkaban. But seeing his _darling _best friend had made him just blow up. He didn't even realize he was saying his thoughts out loud.

"You were my best friend. You had known me for four long years. You had been there through all our adventures. You and Ron. Ron had shown his true nature at the beginning of the Tournament. But I had expected at least you to see the truth. How could you think that I would kill those people? What had I ever done to make you think I was that cold-blooded? Why didn't you stand by me? Why? You were supposed to be my best friend. You were supposed to be so smart. Why wouldn't you hear me out? Why wouldn't you stand by me? Why did you condemn me to my worst fears? _Why_?" his voice went from loud to a whisper.

Harry was losing awareness of his surroundings. A dark mist was spreading across his vision even as he fought it. He knew what was coming. This was how his worst memories were played out in front of his open eyes when he was in Azkaban with the dementors. 

He saw it all again. Coming down to the Entrance Hall, his parents' burnt photo clutched tightly to his chest, his still-bleeding leg leaving bloodied footsteps on the marble. Seeing many teachers and adults gathered there ranting and arguing or crying. Hermione standing huddled into herself in a corner, keeping her eyes to the floor until Ron came down the stairs and took her in a tight embrace. She began crying then. 

Harry heard again every damning accusatory word that came out of the adults' mouths even as he had one eye on his two best friends, hoping against hope that they would look at him, see the truth in his eyes. He watched as his wand was taken away and snapped by the white-bearded man who had been his mentor, cruel fingers digging into his arms as he was held back from rescuing his wand. He watched as he was informed that he was expelled permanently and not allowed to come back to Hogwarts or join any other magical school. He watched as he was told brusquely to leave. He saw himself pleading and begging his best friends to give him a chance, to listen to him. He watched as Ron said some really harsh things to him but Hermione just kept her eyes on Ron's arm where she was leaning her face. 

Harry saw again the trial, the first two days, when Hermione had avoided his gaze, when he had tried to speak to her but was pushed away and told off by the Weasleys who surrounded her at all times. And on the third day, he watched as she entered the courtroom and gave him a stare full of hatred and bitter loathing. By then Mad-Eye or rather Barty Crouch had presented some solid evidence showing that Harry cheated in the Tournament and deliberately tried to hurt the other Champions. The Ministry officials who were Death-eaters in reality had presented some 'evidence' that Harry had been turning evil for years.

Then it was Ron's testimony. Harry didn't care about the rules, he pretended to care about others but he was very selfish and evil in reality. He had weird dreams sometimes. His scar had some dangerous history and affected his behavior. All Harry wanted was fame and attention. He showed such menacing traits that his muggle family saw it fit to lock him in a room and put bars on his window. And on it went, Ron letting out all the anger and jealousy that had been buried within him all these years. 

Hermione's testimony was not much better despite all of Harry's hopes. She agreed with all that Ron said when asked by the judges. She testified on Harry's dismal grades in all other subjects but his talent in hexes and curses. She told the court about Harry's rather secretive nature and unwillingness to tell others about anything. She even told them about the encounter in their Third Year with Sirius Black and Harry's uncontrollable anger and bloodthirsty stance. Why, he would have killed the escaped convict if Professor Lupin hadn't made it there on time. 

Her testimony pretty much sealed his fate. If his closest friends thought he was capable of mass-murder and all evidence pointed to him, then it must be true. He should be shipped off to Azkaban as soon as possible. He should just be given the Kiss for public safety, underage or not. He should be.....

Harry heard a distant voice calling his name repeatedly through the haze of his memories. He focused on that voice, letting it lead him out of this dark place that existed in his mind. Slowly, the mist before his eyes cleared and Mr. Denver's worried face came into focus. He didn't know when or how he had ended up sitting on the sofa at the lobby with Mr. Denver crouching in front of him, shaking him gently.

Harry looked up to see Hermione being led away gently by a bushy-haired woman who was probably her mother. Her face was a red mess and she was still sobbing pitifully, looking over her shoulder at him as she was being taken out. 

"Harry, are you alright?" Mr. Denver asked gently.

"Y-Yes....What happened?" he asked wondering if he had said anything out loud just now. He was grateful to feel his face clear of any tears. He would not cry. At the very least not in front of the girl who was partly-responsible for his terrible fate.

"You just kind of blanked out there for a minute" Mr. Denver tried to sound reassuring.

After assuring the Denvers that he was fine and he didn't want to talk about it, Harry requested they return to their hotel. The Denvers were more than ready to do whatever they could to calm him down. And his cats would be able to make him feel better, Alex pointed out. As Harry got into the car, he saw a man running out of the hotel and looking around. When he saw Harry, he began to wave frantically and ran towards the car. The car was already moving and since no one else seemed to have seen or heard the running man, Harry kept quiet and just watched him. He was almost certain it was Hermione's father and he certainly didn't want to hear what he had to say. 

To his relief, the Grangers either didn't try or didn't manage to track him down for the few last days of his vacation. His tigercats certainly did make him feel better, sensing the turmoil of his thought and soothing him by staying close. The green-eyed Siyaa who was so playful and mischievous and the more serious golden-eyed Tawreek. He had given them the names of two warrior brothers from an ancient tale he had found in the university library in Surrey. It was the tale of two brothers kidnapped at birth by an evil witch and brought up by her, labeled as evil by the rest of the world even when they proved time and time again that they weren't. The two brothers were finally taken to a different world by a fairy-like creature because the mortals didn't deserve them. Harry liked that story a lot. 

After taking things easy for a few days and going out to say goodbye to all his friends and the Bay Ghosts, Harry took a flight back to London so that he'd make it in good time for the Hogwarts Express. It was time to face Hogwarts again. 

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Important A/N: For a more proper communication about any and all HP fanfiction, I'm starting a message-board. I don't know of any existing message-boards about fanfiction. I think it's the perfect place to discuss and criticize fanfiction and I think it is friendlier than Yahoo groups. The address is in my profile. Anyone and everyone is invited to join. We'll discuss whatever fanfics that we read, criticize some, recommend others. When you create your profile, choose whatever name you like, but maybe you could write your ffnet pen-name in your bio so that we can all relate who's who. When you wanna start a discussion on a fanfic, use the fic's title as the topic for your thread. **Though I'm starting the message-board site, it is in no way limited to me or my fics.** I just wanna be able to speak to other ffnet-goers. It's pretty plain right now, feel free to suggest wallpapers and tiles. If many, many HP fanfic-maniacs join, we'll get other moderators besides me to keep the site funky. Let's get chattin'! 


	9. Hogwarts Express

A/N: Thanx for all the reviews. You keep me going or else, I already know what is gonna happen in my story, I don't have to _write_ it. Lots of you guys have been asking about Hagrid since forever. Finally, your question will be answered. The pairing for Harry will remain a mystery for….I don't know how long.

To answer a question, Harry seemed submissive to the Dementors in the first chapter because, see he didn't have a wand or any way to defend himself. He knew any physical fighting was just pointless and the dementors would take him anyway so he just went along instead of fighting. Dementors only recognized him as a prisoner, not as the guy who just killed Voldemort or anything.

He still hates his friends. I made up the fairy-tale that contained the tigercats' namesakes.

Yes, the man running after the car was Mr. Granger.

**Chapter Nine: Hogwarts Express**

Harry was sitting at the window seat in the business class of the plane, on his way back to London. The tigercats were stowed away wherever all the pets were supposed to be stowed away in the plane. His thoughts were flitting over various subjects and now they returned to the Denvers. He was going to miss them. They had made his life seem normal for some time, although they had questioned him on his past a few times. He couldn't help but snort when he remembered the times Mrs. Denver kept insisting he see a shrink. He had said very little since the meeting with his ex-best friend. Thankfully they left the topic alone when they sensed his reluctance to speak about it.

Harry arrived in London fairly early in the morning on 1st of September. He was undecided on what to do. He could go to King's Cross early, find a compartment and stay there to avoid the crowd but if he was discovered there by any of the students the whole platform would probably find out and do God knows what. He still didn't know what to expect from them though he had a fair idea. On the other hand, he could go at the last possible minute, put up with a little staring and jostling but avoid spending too much time listening to what the other students' parents had to stay. In the end he decided to go just a little earlier than eleven.

At the same time, a last minute staff meeting was being held at Hogwarts. Dumbledore was sitting in his customary chair at the head of the table surveying the staff. There had been a few changes more than usual to the teachers' ranks over the last term.

Professor Sprout finished her report on the condition of the greenhouses and the plans for Herbology in the new term. Dumbledore turned to Professor Sirius Black for the report on the Care of Magical Creatures subject. Sirius was lost in thought and had to be elbowed by Professor Lupin. He gave a short report in a very subdued voice, his expression gloomy. The other teachers – except 'the bat with greasy hair' – were full of sympathy for him. Both Professor Black and Professor Lupin would be starting to teach in the new term. Sirius Black had chosen this job even when he had been offered a senior position as Auror for the Ministry as had Remus Lupin.

The Dark Curse at the end of the Triwizard Tournament had killed many people. Among them were two teachers. Hagrid and Madam Hooch. It was one of the reasons the teachers had been in such a rage on that night rather than trying to keep the situation calm. Both teachers were on patrol duty in the Quidditch pitch to avoid any loitering students or interference in the Tournament by any of the spectators. Both had been killed on the spot since they were very near the area where Harry port keyed back with the Cup. Professor Grubby-Plank had taken over Care of Magical Classes temporarily but since no suitable replacement could be found, she agreed to stay until the end of term. The Quidditch practices and matches were supervised and refereed by the teachers in turns. Now Professor Black would be taking over the subject as well as Madam hooch's position as Flying Instructor and Quidditch referee.

Professor Lupin was now famous as a hero in the wizarding world. Just a year ago, he had been declared a Death eater by the Prophet. He had been one too, in a way. When Voldemort had returned at the end of the Triwizard Tournament, he had begun to gather an army at once. Voldemort had been researching a dangerous hybrid spell to control werewolves over fourteen years ago. He had been very close to perfecting the Luscar, a charm that set the beast free in a werewolf at all times and not just on the full moon. On his return, it was one of the first spells he worked on. In a matter of days Voldemort achieved the balance of the spell. Once mastered and cast properly, it made the beast inside a werewolf dominant at all times even when the werewolf was in his human form. Voldemort had Lupin captured immediately and cast the charm on him to gain a spy among the Order during Harry's trial. The wolf inside Lupin was prepared to serve Voldemort. Remus was unable to fight off the charm even for a moment to warn Dumbledore since it was more powerful than even the Imperious. It took the Order a few months to find out about the Luscar and Lupin managed to escape back to Voldemort before the Order members could trap him.

Once the Death Eater attacks became commonplace again and the wizarding folks began to be on the lookout for themselves and their families, Voldemort decided that the Luscar was better than the Imperious. He had over a dozen werewolves by then and planned a major werewolf attack on Hogsmeade the full moon two months away. Voldemort had captured one of the few wealthy pureblood wizarding families that were all out against him, the Arquette family. At their refusal to cooperate, he locked them in a cell with Remus on the night of the full moon. The wolf was more than pleased to taste human flesh for the first time however something unexpected occurred.

As the wolf was dominant when he was in human form, Remus found himself more in control in the wolf form. When the transformation was over, the wolf prowled the cell and growled angrily at the human huddled together in a corner. Remus was screaming inside, not wanting to hurt these innocent, brave people who had stood up to Voldemort but the wolf wanted their blood. The beast pounced on the wizard standing in front of his family and brought him to the ground. After giving him a deep gash in the chest, he jumped on the witch who was trying to get him off her husband. A deep scratch to her face was enough. The beast turned to the two children who were crouching near the wall crying. The beast sniffed at them but Remus was filled with dread. He looked at the little girl, crying against her brother's arm. She was so young, about the same age he was when he was first bitten. It was so unfair to be a werewolf since such a young age. No one deserved it. At that moment, Remus realized that he or rather his wolf form was licking the girl's face. He still felt the beast's urge to bite at the back of his mind but when he thought to turn his head the wolf body obeyed.

Somehow, that night he and the Arquettes managed to escape. Dumbledore and some Order members were there the moment a spy notified them of the escape. Remus went with Dumbledore willingly in his wolf form but he had to be locked up in a room once in human form where the beast was dominant. After a lot of study and experiments, Dumbledore came up with a Potion that could reverse the charm. It was only a few days before the planned werewolf attack but it was enough. On the night of full moon, The Order of Phoenix with Remus and the Arquettes was prepared to face the werewolf attack on Hogsmeade. They managed to capture almost all the werewolves with the traps that had been set up. After that, Dumbledore made sure Remus got most of the credit for the rescue mission and the Arquettes were reported to have become werewolves in the Prophet. Ever since then, Remus was famous and hailed a hero. People who lived or had relatives who lived in Hogsmeade always came up to shake his hand and thank him. Though werewolves were still disliked generally and there were people who hated Remus, there were not too many protests when Dumbledore declared that Remus had accepted his old teaching job again. Now he was back at Hogwarts to teach Defense against the Dark Arts.

Once the various reports by the teachers were completed, Dumbledore began the discussion that was the main focus among them all. The return of Harry Potter. Dumbledore had already spoken to each teacher about the extra classes for Harry and now he announced the plan to help Harry pass his OWLS as well as his Sixth Year exams by the end of term. Some teachers had questions.

"Is Harry going to be re-Sorted now since he is a new student?" Professor McGonagall asked worriedly.

"No, I'm afraid that cannot be an option. If Harry is re-Sorted to a different House, he will probably never have anything to do with his former friends. Harry needs to forgive them as much as they need his forgiveness. Without it, none of them will ever heal completely. Harry will also carry bitterness inside him forever. Impossible as it may seem, Harry needs to befriend them again" Dumbledore said solemnly.

"Will Harry be joining the Quidditch team again? Gryffindor already has a Seeker right now" Professor Sprout asked.

"I met and spoke to Harry shortly after his release from Azkaban. From what I have seen, Harry does not wish to mingle at all with any wizarding folks. I doubt that his attitude has changed over the summer. For now he has to attend school but after that, if his feelings still didn't change, we might never see Harry Potter again. It is essential that we try our best to get him to mix with the other students because it is unlikely he will do so out of free will. He is still too deeply wounded by our actions a year ago. I cannot say I blame him but I do not wish to see him live in resentment for the rest of his life because of us. That is why I suggest that he should join the Quidditch team. I'm sure Mr. Reed will Understand and give his place on the team willingly. Group work and assignments in classes would also be good for interaction between Harry and the other students" Dumbledore looked at the nodding assembly of teachers.

"It would be best if all the teachers treated him as if he was a normal student. Any apologies will only get on his nerves and further alienate him. We can only hope that in time his wounds will heal. I will insist that you award him House points and detentions like every other student" his half-moon glasses shone as he surveyed his staff of teachers.

Unaware of Dumbledore's interfering intentions, Harry was making his way towards King's Cross in a cab. The closer he got, the more dreadful he felt. This was one time he was absolutely not looking forward to going to Hogwarts. He wondered what he would do if it all became too much. He hadn't been aware just how much seeing his former friends could upset him until he met _her_. A half-growl brought his attention to the cage beside him. Siyaa was clawing at the cage restlessly. As the cab stopped at King's Cross, Harry got the cage out first before taking his trunk. After loading the trunk on the trolley and the cage on top of it, Harry set out towards the barrier. He was still dresses in casual muggle clothes.

The crowd was no worse than usual as Harry made his way to the barrier. There were other Hogwarts students who noticed Harry at once but he wasn't paying attention to them. Once he was across the barrier, he took a deep breath and staring straight ahead, set out to find a compartment with space near the front rather than back as was usual for him in the past. He wanted to find a compartment with some First or Second Years so that his Year-mates wouldn't find him. He was so busy looking into the compartments that he didn't notice the red-haired family until they were face to face.

There were Mr. and Mrs. Weasley with their children minus the trunks. There was Ron standing beside Ginny in front of Bill and the twins. Harry had paused automatically at the unexpected sight of them though now he wondered just why it was unexpected. Now he turned his face away and pushed his trolley on its way. It was then that Mrs. Weasley put one hand on his hand at the trolley handle. He might not have expected them but they had come here fully expecting to run into him.

"Harry dear, please hear me out. We know that we should have believed you and stood by last year but can't you see how it was? You remember how badly Fred was injured in that blast. We were half mad with grief when Madam Pomfrey told us he might not make it. I know that is not an excuse for blaming you and betraying you like this but surely you can sympathize-" Mrs. Weasley's plea was interrupted by Harry's angry voice.

"NO, I can't _sympathize_. Now if you will please get out of my way, I have nothing further I wish to say to you" he stated coldly as he snatched his hand away from hers.

"Harry, please. Please try to understand. We never meant to hurt you. We thought you had gone over. Even Dumbledore believed it…." Ginny was making no attempt to stop her tears.

"You never meant to **_hurt_** me? And what were all those damning testimonies supposed to do for me in the trial? Get me admitted to a mental institution? You never realized they would send me to Azkaban? I thought of you as my family. I thought you knew me. I thought that no matter what the rest of the world thought, you would always know the truth and stay by my side. I know now that I was wrong. You were not even prepared to hear me out. You judged me without listening to my side, just like the rest of the world. Why should I listen to you now? I don't care what excuses you have to give. I never want to see or speak to any of you ever again. Just stay away from me."

"Harry, please don't say that. We have realized our mistakes. We know you are still hurt but please give us a second chance" Mr. Weasley spoke up.

"I'm afraid that's not possible. There is no way your son will ever be my best friend again. There is no way I will ever even consider him a friend again. And so I see no reason why we should ever have to see each other again" his reply was filled with venom. Harry ignored their calls and moved on.

Harry found a compartment filled with what looked like Second and Third Years. He sat down, thankful that no other seats were empty. One icy glare at the other occupants ensured that they were intimidated enough not to speak to him and only speak to each other in hushed whispers.

Harry let the tigercats out of their cage and they settled next to him quietly for most of the ride as he stared out of the window. _I thought of you as my family_. His memories came back to haunt him. Harry remembered the monthly visits at Azkaban. How he would sit in his cell, his face pressed against the bars in an attempt to catch a first glimpse. Every time his heart would thump painfully in anticipation if he caught sight of bushy hair or what looked like red hair darkened by the poor lighting. He would almost stand up whenever he thought he could see his godfather's tall frame. He was disappointed each time. Even the craziest most far gone prisoner there received visitors. But no one ever came to see Harry. He waited and waited. So many nights he stayed up hoping, praying that _someone_ would realize their mistake and come to see him. He began to speak to himself to keep the nightmares and dark memories at bay. Sirius would come for him. He would realize that Harry was innocent, just like him. He would take Harry away from this hell. Professor Lupin would come. He knew dementors were Harry's worst fear. He was very smart, he would figure out the truth. Dumbledore would come. Once he had time to sit back and look at all the phony evidence clearly, he was bound to find out about Harry's innocence. Hermione would come to visit him. To reassure him that she had found some evidence and he would be out of here soon. At least the Weasleys would come. He had been like family to them. They would come to visit him on Christmas. Surely Fred was alright by now. Surely they didn't hold it against him. Yes, they would come to visit him for Christmas even if they thought he was responsible for the dark curse. Mrs. Weasley might bring him some fudge and the twins would bring him some pranks. And maybe Ron would get him a Chudley Cannons' poster for his cell. And Sirius would come with them. He was still Harry's godfather and he would want to see him. _Come see me at least once before I lose my mind_, Harry thought desperately.

On Christmas day, Harry was woken up by a horrible nightmare, but he forgot it in a moment. He straightened his clothes and tried to pat down his hair to make it more presentable. He finished all of his meal so that he wouldn't be too tired when they came. He tried to straighten up his cell as best as he could. And then he waited. And waited and waited and waited. But no one came to see him. There were so many people who came to visit. Not just family but also friends and buddies to the other prisoners. The crazy old man who had been in Azkaban for many years and had no family was visited by a friend who tried his best to cheer him up and have two sane words with him. The death eater in the cell beside Harry's was visited by his wife and two young daughters.

"Daddy, daddy I drew so many pictures for you. See, here's one with me and Kimmy in front of the house. And this one is of the park in front of the house. And see I drew the neighbor's dog. And this one…." the five year old girl kept showing pictures to her father.

When her parents began to speak, she turned her attention to Harry. She tiptoed towards his cell carefully. Harry noticed her and turned away from his futile attempt to strain to catch a glimpse of a familiar face. Even the little girl could see the sadness and despair in his eyes. She offered him a picture of her and her sister that she had drawn for her father. Before Harry could raise his hand to accept it, her mother called her back and gave him a poisonous look.

And that was how Christmas day ended for Harry in Azkaban. He wasn't going to forget it in a hurry. In fact, he was going to remind himself of it on purpose every time he felt like being friendly towards anyone at Hogwarts. There was no way he would give them a second chance to hurt him like that. Each and every one of them had disliked or even hated him at some point. The Slytherins naturally hated him, the Gryffindors when he lost points, the Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs when he was considered the heir to Slytherin. He was sick of proving himself to them. They could all go and rot. He wasn't going to smile and 'That's okay' every time one of them apologized. He was going to Hogwarts because he had to, not to relieve them of their guilt.

"Time to change" one of the boys announced and Harry realized they were almost there.

Taking his new uniform out of his trunk, he noticed the robes were plain without any badges the way Madam Malkin always made them. He didn't think much of it. It didn't make any difference to him whether he was in Gryffindor or any other House. None of them were his friends. Whoever his dorm mates were, they would soon learn to leave him alone.

Harry tried to separate himself from the flow of First Years going toward the boats and found a carriage as far from the train as possible. He had seen familiar faces, heard their gasps of shock at his appearance, but he certainly didn't want to hear what they had to say. Harry barely noticed who the other people in the carriage were, just that he didn't know them. His carriage was one of the first to arrive. He got out and made his way over to the Entrance Hall so that he could have his choice of where to sit for the Feast. He was stopped in the Entrance Hall by Professor McGonagall who pulled him to a corner.

"Here is your Gryffindor badge, Mr. Potter. Let me fix it to your robes" she swished her wand without looking him in the eye.

She hadn't changed at all since the last time he saw her and he had changed completely. He was no longer intimidated by her, this thought made him feel better.

At that moment, the Head Boy from Ravenclaw joined them. After greeting Harry, he handed over a permission letter from the Headmaster that allowed Harry to keep his tigercats. Professor McGonagall took it and informed them that the other teachers would be notified of it. The Head Boy smiled at Harry and Harry muttered thanks to him.

Harry entered the Great Hall to see all the teachers sitting at their places. Everything was exactly as he remembered it. As if the last year didn't happen, he thought. Yeah, right. Harry sat at the very end of the Gryffindor Table closest to the huge doors. The students were pouring in and taking their respective places. Everyone that passes near him would fall silent, staring, then some would return to speaking and whispering and some would remain silent. Harry kept his gaze fixed on the goblet in front of him. He looked angry and scary and so not like the Harry they had been used to. Only when most of the Gryffindor table was filled did some students sit next to him. He smirked. At least his old _friends_ were smart enough not to come and sit near him. He hadn't looked up to see where they were. They could be in Iceland for all he cared. Now if only they were intelligent enough to stay away from him for the rest of term and the next year and the rest of their miserable lives.

The First Years were sorted and Dumbledore gave his customary speech. It was all the same except the last bit.

"Tonight I have the pleasure to welcome two teachers to our ranks. Professor Remus Lupin is once again going to teach Defense against the Dark Arts" Dumbledore's voice was drowned by cheers from three tables.

"And also, since Professor Grubby-Plank resigned at the end of last term, we have a new Care of Magical Creatures teacher. Professor Sirius Black" the cheers that accompanied this announcement were every bit as loud as the last ones.

Harry finally looked away from the goblet and turned his head towards the teachers' table. He had not been expecting this. He saw Professor Lupin and Sirius Black sitting side by side, their wary eyes were fixed on him. Harry's expression was unreadable to everyone even as most eyes were fixed on him. Even the other teachers couldn't fathom what he was thinking as he stared at the two new teachers. Harry was trying to decide who he would murder first if he ever decided to go Dark. The nerve of Dumbledore to take these two as teachers. And he was supposed to take extra classes in the evening with both of them? Not if he could help it. Maybe he could change his electives since he hadn't taken his OWLs yet. _Hey, you left me to rot in Azkaban for a year. The least you could do is let me re-pick my electives. My sanity is already in danger and between Trelawney and Black, I don't think I'll last the term_. Somehow he didn't think Dumbledore would agree to his demand.

He stewed over the matter throughout the dinner. He wondered whether he should speak now or in the morning. There would be the rush to classes and McGonagall wanting to prepare for her first lesson. Maybe he should see her after the feast, Harry thought, glancing at the teachers' table. Many teachers were looking right back at him, half-smiling, and half-grimacing. No, that wasn't an option, he decided as he saw _Professor_ Black ready to leap up and rush to him if it weren't for Professor Lupin's restraining hand. He certainly wasn't prepared to deal with his _dear_ godfather right now. Could you disown a godfather, he wondered turning back to his meal. He hated being watched when he ate, he thought idly. He didn't have to look up to see the entire student body's attention focused on him. Harry took his time eating dinner so that he would be finished exactly when they would all leave the Hall. Maybe he should set his alarm for three a.m. then wake up and go to Dumbledore's office. He could _Reducto!_ the stupid gargoyle and enter. See if Dumbledore's quarters were somewhere up there, break a few things around the office, not that the blue-eyed headmaster would mind. In the end he decided to discuss the matter with Dumbledore the next morning. Talking to McGonagall would be pointless since she'd refer him to the Headmaster any way.

And now it was time to return to Gryffindor Tower and begin his two-year long sentence of studying at Hogwarts by seeing his _buddies_ in the dorm and having two extra nightmares tonight all thanks to them. At least Siyaa and Tawreek would be there. He'd better put them to guard his stuff, he thought bitterly. Never in a million years would he forgive them for burning the few things he had of his parents.

Harry climbed up the numerous stairs and crossed the Common Room without giving anyone the chance to speak. The conversation inside the dorm ended the moment he walked in. Harry stopped to stare at the four boys who had once been his close friends. They were all standing up now, eyes fixed on him. His face was expressionless as he crossed Ron's bed, where they were gathered to get to his own bed. The tigercats were in their cage, clamoring to get out after being cooped up for so long. With a pang he remembered the times he let Hedwig out of her cage after the feast. As he released the cubs, they leaped onto his bed. Harry sat on the bed and instantly the cubs came to him, purring and rubbing their faces to his arm, trying to comfort him. They sensed the turmoil of his thoughts and they wanted to help.

"Harry……..we need to talk" surprisingly it was Dean who spoke up to him.

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There, it's not even a cliffhanger!


	10. Banshees and Veelas

A/N: The banshees in this story are not like the one described in Prisoner of Azkaban. The description is a little bit of myth I've heard and read but mostly stuff I made up to suit the plot.

**Chapter 10: Banshees and Veelas **

"Harry……..we need to talk" surprisingly it was Dean who spoke up to him.

"Oh? And what is there to talk about?" Harry's voice was calm but he was feeling exhausted. The shock of seeing his godfather here had been too much on top of everything else.

The other boys were standing behind Dean and looking at Harry too.

"Harry…….we just……we wanted you to know…." Dean's hesitant words died on his lips when Harry looked up at him.

Being back in the dorm brought back the bitter memory. The dementors had made sure that the memory remained fresh in Harry's troubled mind. He could remember every single detail of that night when his dorm-mates had burnt his last memories of his parents. It was all he had ever had of his parents. There was precious little he knew about them to begin with since the Dursleys never spoke of them and there wasn't anyone else he could ask either. That photo album had been Harry's most prized possession, even the invisibility cloak and his Firebolt weren't as important. He had lost all the pictures of his parents save one. And there was no Hagrid anymore to get him a new one either. Thinking about Hagrid only made Harry feel worse. He was just so tired of it all. He had done what he was born to do. He had killed Lord Voldemort. When would he be in peace with himself? When would all this pain go away?

Ron was standing far back behind his friends. He was very aware that Harry didn't want to see or speak to him right now. He probably never wanted to see Ron ever again. He didn't blame Harry. Who would after going through so much? Ron was sure that he had hurt Harry just as much as Voldemort if not more. It was bad enough that he had been jealous of Harry for becoming Champion, but Ron's behavior during the trial was unforgivable. He hadn't tried to listen to Harry once. He had even forbidden Hermione to talk to him, even when she had wanted to. Harry had tried again and again to make him listen but Ron was too angry and too blind to heed him. Ron had even given Harry a bloody nose one day during the trial when Harry had grabbed hold of his arm outside the courtroom and insisted that Ron hear him out. Now Ron wished almost everyday that he hadn't been so harsh to Harry. If he had even just pretended to listen to Harry maybe Harry would have felt better enough to have a fighting chance at the trial. Ron realized that his testimony had also been one of the solid reasons Harry was sentenced to Azkaban. If his best friend thought so little of him, it only showed how evil Harry was.

"Harry…..what we're trying to say is that we are real sorry for what we did that day. You know, uhh…burning all your stuff….We know some of them meant a lot to you. The invisibility cloak and the album…." Seamus had managed to speak fine until he looked up into Harry's eyes, then his courage failed too.    

"We know we don't deserve to be forgiven and all but we just wanted you to know that we….err…..never regretted anything more than our actions on that day. We know we can't make it up to you….."

"You are right. You can't make it up to me. There's nothing you can do that would bring back the last things that I had to remember my parents by. So I wish you'd just shut up before I lose my temper and hex you out of existence" Harry had stood up, pointing his wand at the lot of them.

If they thought their pathetic apologies would make him forgive them or make him feel better, they could think again. How dare they apologize to him? This wasn't some small matter like spilling juice all over his homework. How dare they speak to him or look at him? How dare they even be in the same room as him?

At his words, the others had dropped their gazes to the floor except Neville. He was looking back at Harry unflinchingly. Neville had been staring at Harry wordlessly on that night too. He had just stood in the common room watching Harry come in to get his things and leaving again empty-handed. Harry had only seen him that once since the Tournament.

Harry breathed deeply. He didn't want to see Dumbledore tonight to explain why he had blown up his dorm-mates. He also didn't want the cubs to be sent off. They hadn't stopped growling since he had stood up, they could feel his anger towards the other humans and automatically considered them as their human's enemy. 

"You can never really make it up to me for burning my belongings. I don't want to hear any more meaningless apologies. They mean nothing to me, they don't let you off the hook and they are certainly bad for my temper. So if you value your life and limbs, it would be best if you left me well alone. I have no choice but to stay here but I'm warning you right now to stay away from me and my property" calm and cool, he had to stay calm and cool. Hadn't he promised himself that he would deal with all this without emotions? He had to remember his resolve, Harry thought as he turned away and prepared to shower before bed.

Harry was up before dawn the next day. He needed to get used to his schedule from day one if he planned to stick to it. The next couple of hours were spent working on maintaining his excellent form. After a proper shower, Harry worked on his hair. He knew the hairstylists back at the boutique would be disappointed if they knew how little of their advice had been put into practice. Harry had learnt all the tips and he now did something to get his messy hair under adequate control, but he wasn't about to spend half an hour in front of the mirror, applying all sorts of stuff to his hair.

Harry wondered when McGonagall would call him up to speak about his hair. He was the only boy in the school who had shoulder-length hair. He wasn't planning on cutting it either. He knew how much most people wanted to forget the injustice of last year. He realized that most of the witches and wizards at this school would feel immensely better if he dyed his hair black and went back to games and detention like everyone else so that they could all pretend that Azkaban never happened. Harry had no intention of obliging them. He wasn't going to forget about Azkaban and he wasn't going to let them forget it either. After giving his hair a final brush and looking at his neat image one final time, Harry left the dorms. Neville's alarm clock had begun ringing as he descended the stairs to the Common Room. Most of the castle was just waking up as Harry made his way towards Dumbledore's office.

Harry stood in front of the gargoyle, guessing the names of sweets he thought might be the password. He wished he knew the spell that could open doors and passageways without passwords. He was sure such a spell existed and could be found in the library if he really looked for it. And why not? He no longer had a genius best friend who knew everything and could be relied on. In fact, Harry didn't want to rely on anyone anymore. It was one of the reasons he didn't put up a big fight when ordered to come back to Hogwarts. He wanted to learn magic. It was his heritage, something he had gotten from his parents. He had every right to do magic and be a wizard even if he couldn't stand other wizards. Harry wanted to learn magic and become a qualified wizard. From what he had heard from Hagrid, his parents were really good wizards. His mother was good at Charms and his father was good at Transfiguration and he himself was good at Defense against the Dark Arts. But he must have inherited the brilliance in Charms and Transfiguration from his parents too, right? And the way everyone spoke about his dad and the Marauders, his dad must have been really good, becoming Animagi and inventing the Marauders' Map. Harry wanted to be really good at doing magic. He never wanted to depend on anyone else to do anything.

Then there was his new wand, Harry thought as he forgot about the password to Dumbledore's office. He took out his wand cautiously and holding it with both hands, just stared at it. Last night, he had used the wand for the first time to do a cleaning spell on the cubs' cage. The rush of power he had felt at doing just the simple spell had left him dizzy. When he raised his wand again slowly to cast the silencing spell around his bed, he couldn't help but feel excited. There it was again. The rush of adrenaline going to his head made him want to cast a hundred more spells. Harry had never felt so excited about doing magic even in his First Year.

Harry didn't think he wanted to stay in the wizarding world after Hogwarts. He much preferred living around muggles as long as it weren't his relatives. But he wanted to learn all the magic he needed before he left Hogwarts. Becoming an Animagi would be fun and useful. He also wanted to learn all about making enchanted maps and finding secret passages and passwords to follow in his father's footsteps. He wanted to learn every charm and transfiguration spell he might ever need to live independently. He wanted to learn all the different curses and hexes to use on anyone who annoyed him like Ron and Malfoy. He wanted to…

His thoughts were interrupted as the gargoyle jumped aside and Dumbledore stepped out from behind it.

"Harry. Why don't you come upstairs so that we can talk in my office" Dumbledore beckoned before going back up to his office.

Harry followed him and took a seat. Dumbledore was already seated behind his desk.

"Now, what was it you wanted to see me about?" Dumbledore was acting the way he always did. The traces of uncertainty that were there when he had seen Harry at Azkaban and again in the Leaky Cauldron had vanished.

"I want to re-pick my electives. I find it impossible to carry on with Care of Magical Creatures and Divination for the next two years" Harry answered in a calm and matter-of-fact manner.

"I see. You are aware that changing elective subjects is against the school rules?" Dumbledore adjusted his half-moon glasses.

"Yes. I am also aware that re-accepting expelled students is also against the school rules. Therefore, I see no reason why I shouldn't be allowed to re-pick my electives" Harry remained as cool as ice. He knew it was essential if he hoped to be taken seriously.

"You have been studying those electives since your Third Year. Picking new electives would mean you have to finish four years worth of studying by the end of this term for the new electives. The OWLs cover the Third, Fourth and Fifth Years' studies and you will also be sitting for your Sixth Year exams. You must realize that is almost impossible. That is too much work to be completed in one term. You are already going to have a hard time keeping up with your Fifth and Sixth Years studies"

"I realize that and I am willing to do the extra work. I must insist on the new electives. There is no way I will continue with either of my current electives" Harry remained firm on his demands.

Dumbledore remained silent as he studied the young man in front of him. He could see Harry's determination. Dumbledore realized that Harry wasn't prepared to take no for an answer. Some things needed time and just couldn't be forced. He sighed, Sirius would be disappointed.

"Very well! If that is what you truly want, I will arrange for your new elective teachers to teach you the whole syllabus in extra classes. You remember that you have to take at least two electives of course. Have you chosen your electives yet?"

"Yes. I'd like to take Arithmancy and Ancient Runes" Harry replied confidently.

Dumbledore remained quiet for a moment.

"Are you sure about that, Harry? Those two subjects are among the hardest electives. Studying four years' syllabus in one term for those two subjects will leave you no time for anything else all year. Maybe you might want to look over all the other choices before you make your decision" Dumbledore suggested.

"I have already looked through all the choices available. I bought the Fifth and Sixth Years' books for all of them and I have looked over all of them during the last few weeks. My decision is made" Harry said with certainty.

Seeing the stubborn set of Harry's jaw, Dumbledore knew Harry would not change his mind. With such determination, Harry could possibly make it through the term with the new subjects. He wondered if Harry would be willing to study with other students. He was certain a certain Miss Granger would be more than willing to help him with the new subjects. Maybe something could be arranged once Harry had been through a few weeks of study.

Dumbledore accepted Harry's decision and explained the schedule and amount of work needed for the different subjects. Professor McGonagall would give Harry his extra classes' schedule later that day.

"However for this week, you will be having Defense against the Dark Arts extra classes every day" Dumbledore finished.  

"Why?" Harry's single word was filled with resentment. He felt angered at being told to spend every evening with Lupin. He wished that subject had also been an elective so he could drop it. He had been planning to wait a couple of weeks before dropping the extra classes after he had proven he could study the subject without extra classes.

"It is for your own protection, Harry" Dumbledore leaned forward.

Harry couldn't help but snort.

"What do I need protection from? Voldemort is already dead."

"There are other things that pose a threat to you now. Professor Lupin will explain it to you in your class this evening. And now I believe you have just enough time to have breakfast and prepare for classes" Dumbledore continued when he noticed Harry was about to interrupt.

Before either of them could say anything else there was a knock on the door and it was wrenched open.

"Headmaster, I am terribly sorry to bother you so early but I needed to speak to you abou…" Sirius Black's rapid speech came to a halt when he noticed Harry sitting there.

"I will be on my way then" Harry got up and passed his godfather without looking at him.

"Harry….? I…." whatever else Sirius was going to say died away as Harry turned to look back at him. His eyes were filled with a silent fury in that brief glance before he turned back and left, closing the door behind him.

Sirius had to close his eyes before any tears slipped out. Seeing Harry's pure white hair tore his heart into pieces. Why had he suffered so much? Why hadn't his godfather been there for him? Sirius felt the guilt well up inside him, suffocating him. He knew that behind all the anger and fury was a great deal of hurt. Harry had closed up completely. God only knew how they were all going to get though this.

"What was Harry doing here?" Sirius turned around to find Dumbledore looking at him sadly.

"He came to ask if he could re-pick his electives" Dumbledore said quietly.

"No! You…you didn't let him drop Care of Magical Creatures…..you wouldn't…..did you?" Sirius whispered.

"I am afraid I had no choice, Sirius. He was adamant. I couldn't refuse" Dumbledore looked old and tired as he said it.

"But you couldn't let him drop my subject. How will I ever speak to him if he won't take the subject I am teaching? He will never speak to me outside classes. Please, Professor Dumbledore….please. You have to do something. You must persuade him to come to class. I can never see him any other way. What will I do?" Sirius ran a hand through his hand, looking desperate.

"That will not be possible Sirius. You know how stubborn Harry is, we are already testing his patience as it is. I cannot force him to take Care of Magical Creatures. Sirius, please calm down. I am sure you will have plenty of chances to speak to him. You will be receiving his guardianship any day now" Dumbledore continued to reassure the distraught man in his office.

Meanwhile, Harry was making an entrance in the Great Hall which was currently full of breakfasting students. As expected a great hush fell over students and teachers alike. Harry swept the Hall with one look before heading for a deserted part of Gryffindor table and sitting to have his breakfast. Harry didn't look up again until he was finished ignoring all the whispering he could hear around him. Professor McGonagall swept past the table, handing the Gryffindors their timetables. Harry accepted his silently. He had Double Charms, Transfiguration, Arithmancy and finally Defense against the Dark Arts for the day. Of course he also had extra classes at the end of the day.

First day of the term was as busy as usual. All the teachers started the classes with a discussion of the term's syllabus and ended it with giving out a long assignment. When Harry entered the Charms classroom barely before the lesson started, Professor Flitwick looked at him and flinched so bad that he toppled off his stack of books behind the desk. Professor McGonagall carried out her lesson as usual despite his presence but Harry caught her giving him worried looks form time to time. Lunch was an affair of hushed whispers all over again. Harry didn't know if Arithmancy was better or worse than the other classes. On one hand, Harry barely knew Professor Vector and the other students in the class minus one ex-best friend with big black bags under her eyes and a very agitated and distracted manner throughout the class. On the other hand, the teacher might as well have been speaking Mermish for all he understood. Harry went through the classes with a cool and detached attitude.

The other Gryffindors had obviously been warned by his dorm-mates to keep their distance. Harry even saw Fred and George walking towards him determinedly at lunch before being intercepted by none other than Ron. Harry was glad that everyone was leaving him alone right now. He knew it wouldn't last but at least it gave him time to get used to his new life. There was still the staring and muttering that he had to put up with. Everywhere he walked, the other students stepped out of his way rather hurriedly and everyone was silent until he was gone before they continued conversation and walked to classes. He was of course aware that he was the main topic of conversation since he had heard his name mentioned countless times. All the students from his year except the Slytherins winced every time they happened to glimpse his white hair. No one could stop discussing how different Harry was and how he had changed. Even the Slytherins were overcome enough to leave him alone, which was a first for Harry since the day he had become Seeker in his First Year. Defense Against the Dark Arts turned out alright. Harry didn't feel as bad as he thought he would on having to take the subject with Professor Lupin. He was glad the wizard had not shown any reactions to his presence.

When the class was over Professor Lupin held him back for a moment to tell him to be back for his extra class at eight. Harry nodded and left the classroom. He returned to Gryffindor Tower to drop off his bag and freshen up before going to dinner. The cubs had been waiting to greet him enthusiastically. They had finished p all the food he had left for them. Harry was surprised at first because that amount of food was supposed to last them the whole day. But growing cubs needed their energy, he thought wryly glancing around at all the torn and tattered bed sheets and hangings. Harry let the rush of excitement course through him once again as he used his wand to fix the place up. He smirked remembering Charms class when he had accidentally smiled after casting a charm three times in a row using his wand. Most of the students had looked terrified by his smile.

Harry told the cubs to follow him as he left the dorms. He made his way towards the kitchen, the cubs trotting behind him. They passed some students on their way. The cubs drew as much attention as their owner causing the other to stop and watch the procession until Harry and the cubs were out of sight. Harry was received in the kitchen by a thoroughly excited Dobby who bowed so low, his nose got quite squished to the floor.

"It is so good to see you again Master Harry Potter sir. Dobby had never been so happy. Dobby knew Master was never evil and Master didn't kill any of those wizards. Master Harry Potter is too kind to do anything like that. Master Harry Potter freed Dobby and gave Dobby socks for Christmas. Even if the socks were matching, it was still too kind of Master Harry Potter. Dobby must take care of Harry Potter now that he is back at Hogwarts. They don't have any house elves at that nasty Azkaban prison. Master must not have gotten any proper food there. Dobby will cook the best food for him. Dobby will make sure…." Dobby's lengthy outburst ended when he sighted the tigercats. His eyes bulged out and his frame stooped lower as he took a step back in fear.

"It's alright, Dobby. These are my pet tigercats. They won't hurt you. I need a favor, Dobby. I need you to feed the cubs when I'm in class. Can you do that for me?" Harry asked.

Dobby agreed albeit hesitantly. After a little more encouragement, Harry introduced Dobby to the cubs. The cubs accepted Dobby and the role he would play in their lives everyday. Harry decided it would be easier to have his dinner there rather than the Hall and sat down at the house elves' bidding. The cubs were served minced meat in bowls and settled down to enjoy their food as the house elves skirted around them to do their own work. When Harry left the kitchen with the cubs to return upstairs, the cubs caught the scent of fresh air and bolted out of the Entrance Hall instead of following Harry. Harry could feel their excitement at being in the open and he also sensed their confidence that he would follow them. The cubs seemed to know him pretty well. Harry followed them to the grounds and sat on the grass, watching them run around chasing each other or roll around in a mock fight. They would growl ferociously, each trying to prove himself the stronger. Harry had to laugh at their antics.

Regretfully, Harry couldn't allow them to play any longer. He had to get to his extra class in ten minutes. Harry got up and told the cubs to follow him. They did so but Harry could sense their disappointment at having to go inside. When he walked into the Common Room, it was full of people. All conversation died when everyone saw Harry's pets. They were all staring silently as Harry crossed the Common Room to go to the dorms. A Seventh Year Gryffindor Prefect was the only one to come over and speak.

"Harry, these creatures?" she started hesitantly.

"They are my pets. Tigercat cubs, twins" Harry replied briskly.

"Erm….I don't think students are allowed to bring them as pets. Only owls, cats and frogs are…"

"I know. But these are magical creatures. I have a special pass to keep them. Professor McGonagall is holding it. You can ask her" Harry understood she was only doing her job. At least it hadn't been Ron and Hermione who approached him. He hadn't missed the Prefect badges on their robes in the brief glimpses he had gotten of them.

"But, isn't it dangerous to keep them here? They are not going to harm the other students?" she looked at the cubs apprehensively.

The other students were also casting nervous glances towards the cubs. It was hard to miss the razor sharp claws and fangs. The cubs already moved with the lethal elegance of a jungle cat.

"They aren't going to harm anyone unnecessarily. They share a mind-link with me. They will only hurt or attack anyone who tries to harm me or anyone that they can sense I dislike" Harry answered smoothly.

Harry heard a couple of audible gulps but didn't turn around to see who made them. Instead he walked up the stairs followed by the cubs, leaving the rest of them more nervous than before. After dropping off the cubs and picking up his Defense books, Harry returned to the Defense against the Dark Arts classroom to find Professor Lupin already seated and waiting.

"Hello again Harry. Why don't you sit over here? Today we will only be working on theory so you won't be needing your wand. Professor Dumbledore has informed you that you will be having extra classes with me all week long?"

Harry nodded. He wanted to ask why but he found himself lost in memories. Professor Lupin had given him extra lessons on fighting Dementors in this very class. Everything was the same yet it would never be the same again. How could he? How could he have stood by and let Harry be sentenced to Azkaban? Professor Lupin had been one of his father's best friends. Okay, so that didn't guarantee much. Look at his own best friends. But still, no one understood Harry's fear of the Dementors more than Lupin. He had seen how Harry couldn't be in the same room with a Dementor without collapsing, yet he had stood and watched Harry's trial silently. Even if he hadn't testified against Harry, he hadn't helped him either. He should have told the court about Harry's fear. No one was prepared to listen to a word Harry said but if Lupin had spoken up maybe, just maybe the court would have sent him somewhere else instead.   

"Alright, let me explain" Harry was brought back to the present to find Professor Lupin in front of him. He placed a book in front of Harry and pulled a chair to sit opposite him.

"What we will be covering in the next few weeks of your extra classes is not part of the Fifth and Sixth Year syllabus. For the time being you will be learning about two different species of magical creatures that pose a threat to you. Professor Dumbledore feels it is essential that you know how to defend yourself against them and I must agree" up-close Professor Lupin was looking a little tired but his hair hadn't greyed anymore than the last time Harry had seen him.

"What are these creatures? How come they are only a threat to me?" Harry was beginning to feel a little intrigued.

"Well, the creatures I am talking about are Banshees and Veelas. They only pose a threat to y.."

"Banshees and Veelas? I didn't know Veelas were Dark creatures" Harry was too surprised to stay quiet. Whatever he had been expecting, it wasn't this.

"They are not. That is why they aren't part of the Defense syllabus. They are mentioned briefly in Seventh Year Care of Magical Creatures but that's it. However you need to learn thoroughly about both Veelas and Banshees in order to defend yourself against them. Both types of creatures will try to take you the moment they sense you" Professor Lupin looked very serious as he said that.

"Why would they want to take me?" Harry was beyond curious.

And so Professor Lupin began a long explanation about the two types of creatures which took up the next couple of hours.

He explained about Banshees first since they were the imminent danger to Harry. There isn't much known about them because unlike other magical races, the banshees have never been studied closely by wizards. This is because banshees live in tight colonies and aren't prepared to let any witches or wizards near them. Banshees are Dark creatures not unlike Vampires. They have magical senses and magical powers. Banshees use their magical sense of hearing like Veelas use their magical sense of smell. Banshees have very good magical hearing. They can hear heartbeats. That is how they look for victims. Banshees feed on grief like Vampires feed on blood. A broken heart beats differently than a normal heart. With their magical hearing, they can hear a broken heart beating from miles away. A banshee will trace the broken heart and on finding the person, they will let out an ear-piercing scream. Muggles and wizards alike fall victim to banshees and the scream is lethal to those who are in anguish. The victim's death releases the grief within him or her and this in turn becomes the source of magical power to the banshee.

Banshees do not have offspring. Their race consists solely of witches and on the rare occasion, wizards. Sometimes when a witch with a broken heart hears the banshee scream, she turns into a banshee instead of dying. Why some die and some turn to banshees is a mystery to wizardkind. Banshees are normally all witches but throughout history there have been rare cases of male banshees existing in a colony. A male banshee is known as a banshai. When a witch becomes a banshee, her hair turns pure white. The magical powers possessed by a banshee are not known in detail. The power that is common knowledge is the banshee's scream. It can hurt any creature that threatens a banshee and it is lethal to people with broken hearts. Another magical power of the banshees is their ability to fly. The basis of this power is still a disputed topic amongst wizards. Some say that banshees have invisible wings, others say they are able to just defy gravity, but the most popular belief is that banshees can control the wind. This theory is supported by the tendency of a banshee's hair and robes billowing elegantly even when there is no breeze.  

Another common thing among all banshees is their necklaces. All the banshees seen to date wear a necklace of sort. It looks like a strip of gray silk that is slightly looser than a choker. There are black stones that seemed to be studded or threaded on that necklace. Most banshees have one large black stone on their necklace but some banshees have been seen with necklaces that two or three stones. Necklaces that have more than one stone tend to have smaller stones compared to the necklaces with only one stone. What these necklaces signify and where they come from is not known by anyone except the banshees themselves.

And then there are the veelas. This race consists of both male and female although the number of females is significantly higher. Their beauty is magical and mesmerizes all muggles and wizards who set eyes on them. They turn into birdlike creatures and have the ability to fly when angered. Their beauty and hypnotizing power is the magical power that they possess. Every veela comes into his or her magical inheritance upon reaching the age of sixteen. After that, they will be able to identify their mate by scent. A veela has very little time to bond with the mate and once bonded, the veela must remain with the mate for all their lives. Veelas who don't find their mates before the mate dies for any reason, live life as an empty shell. Veelas who are rejected by their mates die out of grief. A veela's life is forever dependant on his or her mate's every mood and wish.

Veelas and banshees are mortal enemies. Each hate the other race and battles among veela families and banshee colonies are universal. The war among the two magical races spans the past few centuries. History books tell the tale of a memorable feud long ago. Legend says that in those days veelas and banshees possessed a great amount of magical powers. Yet in that feud, they fought each other to such an extent that their magical resources were almost finished. At that time, the leading veela and banshee were locked in a bitter struggle. Both were very powerful and ended the battle by casting a terrible magic on each other. Their magic worked but it extended to the whole race rather that the leader alone. As a result of that fateful day, the magical resources of both races were greatly diminished. Since then, the veelas are cursed to be bound to a mate for all their lives. If they don't bond with the mate that they recognize from his or her spell, they will die a slow death. The veela curse on the banshees was also very powerful. Because of that curse, banshees can never have a mate and cannot have children. Their race only continues by turning other witches into banshees. Throughout the ages, the two races have remained foes.

"And that is why both races are a danger to you, Harry. You have suffered a great deal of pain and betrayal and it is more than evident by the change in your hair. That change was more magical than anything else. It is Professor Dumbledore's belief as well as mine that you might be turned into a banshai. A banshai has a very special place in a banshee colony. A colony with a banshai is considered superior to other banshee colonies. If there are any banshees close enough to hear your heartbeat, they will come in search of you. And when they see your hair, they will recognize that you can become a banshai. It might take only one banshee scream to turn you, or maybe it will take more. We do not have much understanding of what happens then. No one has ever even been able to attempt to speak to a banshee. All witches that become banshee leave all their possessions behind, even their wands. Neither do they ever contact any relatives or friends. We do not even know if banshees can speak and do magic like normal witches." Professor Lupin leaned back in his chair.

"As for the veelas, they can smell banshees. It is my guess that they can smell a banshai too. Since you are not a banshai, they will not get the scent of a banshai from you. However if they see you, they will realize that you are a potential banshai. That is a greater threat to you because a veela is most likely to try and kill a potential banshai. The war among veelas and banshees is ordinary enough, but veelas tend to take a huge interest in every banshai that ever existed. Veelas can convert a banshai into a veela. And they have successfully converted almost every banshai in history. How that is done is unclear. Veelas are friendly enough towards wizards and mingle freely with us. They aren't hesitant to speak about themselves and their abilities. But the slightest mention of a banshee or a banshai and they turn into their angry bird forms. Hence we have to be very careful. You will have to defend yourself against these two races probably for the rest of your life."

"Why? What's so horrible about being a banshai? Living away from wizards, having a special place in a surrogate family of sorts, it can't be that bad. Can it?"

"Harry, you don't mean that!" Professor Lupin had paled considerably at Harry's serious words.

"Don't I? I think I might like being somewhere far away from other wizards" Harry frowned thoughtfully.

"No, Harry. You can't mean that. Baanshees are Dark creatures. They kill people and feed on their grief and pain. You can't honestly say you would wish to do that" Professor Lupin was becoming more panicked and horrified by the moment. What if Harry was seriously contemplating it?

"Sometimes death is better than living with such pain" Harry's eyes were filled with an emotion that looked like loss.

"Sometimes it just hurts so bad that you would just rather die than suffer anymore" his voice was thick as he continued.

"Banshees only feed on that kind of grief, don't they? Don't they? If they killed every person that was feeling a little betrayed or hurt, then surely such deaths would be more common in the world. They only kill people whose hearts have broken completely. People who no longer wish to live anyway. That isn't such a bad thing after all" Harry still spoke as if he was speaking from some place faraway.

Professor Lupin was beyond worried. He got up from his seat and going over to Harry's side, grabbed hold of his shoulders and turned him around to face him.

"Harry, listen to me. I know that you are hurt. I know you are feeling angry. But you need to overcome it. I know that right now you feel like the pain will never end but it will. You need to give it time. You need to hold on. You need to accept this pain, live through it and survive it. It will get better, Harry. I promise, _it will get better_. You have to believe that. **You have to!**" he was unconsciously shaking Harry by then. He was so afraid of losing the boy to this chasm of pain. Harry shouldn't have to deal with this kind of pain. He shouldn't have to deal with it alone like this.

The shaking seemed to bring Harry back to the present. He blinked then turned his head to look at Professor Lupin curiously. He took a deep breath but didn't remove his hands from the boy's shoulders.

"Harry, the pain won't go away by leaving behind this place, or the people who caused it or even the memories. It will only manifest into something dark if you bottle it up inside. Banshees are what they are because their pain never heals. And they have to continue feeding on others' pain to keep going. If they had managed to heal their pain, they wouldn't remain banshees any longer. Being one of them could not bring satisfaction or happiness" Lupin finished in a whisper.

He released Harry and took his seat again.

"Well, I think we have covered enough for tonight. We shall study banshees for the rest of the week and next week we might be able to start on veelas. The protection spells aren't so complex so I believe you will be able to master them soon enough. However, we will continue to practice them throughout the term so you truly memorize them for a lifetime" Professor Lupin decided to end the lesson.

Harry returned to Gryffindor Tower still lost deep in thought. The Common Room held few students since it was late. Harry went upstairs and retrieved his books. He spent the next couple of hours understanding all that he had learnt in lessons that day. He eve had to refer to Fifth Year books to reinforce what he learnt in Transfiguration. After covering the lessons to his satisfaction, he turned in for the night. He couldn't say it had been a good first day back but it hadn't been that bad either.


	11. Showdown in the Library

A/N: Thanx for all the reviews. I have answered all the reviews for the last chapter at the message board site. The link for it is in the last part of my bio. You can read my replies there. I can't always answer all reviews so, if you have a question or something you'd like me to answer, leave a review **for chapter 10**. Say you wanna ask about chapter 13, review for chap 10 and write 'chap 13' in your review before you ask questions. If you've already left a signed review for chap 10, then leave an unsigned one to ask your question. _I will only answer reviews of Chapter 10 and the answers to them will be found in the link that I mentioned._

**Chapter 11: Showdown in the Library**

Harry had barely sat down to breakfast on his second day back when the owls swooped into the Great Hall. It was lucky he had chosen to sit at a particularly deserted part of the table because within 30 seconds there was a total of 17 owls in various shapes, colors and sizes perching noisily in front of him. As he removed the different letters and envelopes from the owls, more continued to arrive. Once all the owls had flown off, he turned to the pile of letters in front of him. Harry ate the rest of his breakfast distractedly while opening and skimming through the letters. Most of them were from fans, some who claimed to have written to him before this but their letters had been returned back to them. There were also seven letters from several magazines and papers requesting an interview as well as three letters written by people who wanted to write a book about him and four who wanted to include him in the history books they were writing. Harry pushed away the jug of pumpkin juice so that he could place the letter he was reading and finish it before leaving the Hall. He ran his fingers through his hair absently, thinking about the contents of the letter and the other letters before it. Something compelled him to look up and when he did, he saw four girls at the Ravenclaw table staring at him with something akin to awe. They looked away quickly but Harry caught one of the girls blushing under his gaze. He returned to reading the letter and distinctly heard faint giggling from their direction. He blew out a breath of annoyance, gathering the letters and stuffing them in his bag before leaving the Great Hall. As he passed a corridor facing in the greenhouses' direction, he noticed Neville sitting and eating his breakfast with a girl on the school grounds. Harry quirked an eyebrow. Was that really Neville having a _romantic_ breakfast with his _girlfriend_? If things had been different, Harry would be burning with curiosity. Now he just shrugged and continued on his way. The rest of the day passed much the same as the first. Harry stopped by the library to pick up several books to help his lessons and also borrow all the editions of the Daily Prophet that covered both his court trials from the library's archive.

The extra defense lesson went well considering Professor Lupin remained strictly impersonal. Harry learned a few sound blocking spells and their theories. They weren't useful against banshee screams but Lupin explained that once Harry had learnt casting them, he would find it easier to cast the complex spell that could be used to block out banshee screams. However, even that strong spell wasn't perfect. The spell could be held for the same duration as the bubble-head charm and had to be renewed after that. This provides the banshee time to break the wizard's concentration through her scream so it is essential that the spell be practiced until it becomes second nature. And just when Harry was beginning to think that the extra classes might go alright after all, Professor Lupin had to drop the bombshell.

"Alright, I think that's enough practicing for tonight. Why don't you sit down, there is something that I need to discuss with you." Professor Lupin gestured to two chairs.

"Harry, your spell work seems to be much better than in your Third Year. It is amazing how much you have improved. I honestly didn't expect you to master all those spells within one day. In fact, I was planning to practice those spells with you for the rest of the week. Since you have already mastered these spells and no doubt tomorrow you will have successfully learnt the final spell, I think we can spend proceed with practicing it on a banshee." Professor Lupin was watching Harry closely as he said this.

For a moment Harry was confused. What did he mean 'practice on a banshee'? Could he catch one like he caught other dark creatures or his classes? Wouldn't that be dangerous? Harry might be turned into a banshai easily. Then it hit him.

"No" he glared straight at Lupin.

"Harry…"

"NO! Absolutely not. I will not agree to that" Harry replied angrily.

"Harry, you are not being sensible. This is a very real threat to you and you need to be prepared for this, should you ever be…"

"I. Don't . Care. I will not put up with this" his statement made Lupin sigh tiredly.

"Harry, your anger at Seamus must not stand in the way of your preparation. Whether you hate him or not, you are still going to have to go to the same classes as him for the next two years. This is a class too even if you are the only student here. No one is expecting you to become buddies with him but you can work together in this class with him. It is the only way you can prepare to deal with any banshees in the future. A boggart banshee isn't real so you can practice the protection spell without any danger of being turned into a banshai." Lupin tried to persuade him.

"No! I think I can handle the banshees on my own. I don't…" whatever else Harry was going to say was interrupted by Professor McGonagall opening the classroom door and walking in.

"Potter, you are still here. Never mind. Professor Lupin, I have spoken to Mr. Finnegan. He has confirmed that his greatest fear still is banshees and he is prepared to assist in these extra classes. However, he does not know the protection spells and I dare say it will take some time and practice before he can master them. Will you be able to teach him as well as Mr. Potter here?" Professor McGonagall questioned.

"I would have but now it won't work. Harry has already learnt all the minor spells and I only need to teach him the final protection spell. I believe he can learn it by the end of tomorrow's lesson. That means Mr. Finnegan will need to take classes separately. Maybe Harry could take extra classes for other subjects until I finish preparing Seamus?" Professor Lupin was looking warily at Harry. 

"No, no. This is very important. Alright, why don't I give Mr. Finnegan extra lessons on the protection spells? Mr. Potter could skip the banshee lessons and proceed with veela protection lessons for the time being" Professor McGonagall suggested briskly.

"That can be done. So Harry, is all this okay with you?" Lupin was trying to take advantage of McGonagall's presence.

"No, it's not _okay_. I don't want to practice on Finnegan's boggart banshee. I am already taking these extra classes when I should be studying the other subjects to prepare for my double exams. I have to suffer his presence all day in class and all night in the dorms. I will not subject myself to more of this. Are you _trying_ to drive me insane?" Harry's anger at being treated like a child finally won over his patience.

"Mr. Potter, maybe you do not realize the seriousness of this situation. You are living in the wizarding world. You will most probably continue to do so even after you leave Hogwarts or at least you will have visit occasionally. Banshee colonies are always situated closer to wizarding areas. It will take only one banshee, _only one _Mr. Potter. If even one banshee manages to detect you through their magical senses, all banshee colonies will learn of your existence. A Banshai is very valuable to the banshees. The reason for this is unknown but it is an established fact all the same. They will begin to hunt for you. There are charms which can protect a house from banshee invasion but out in the open they are unstoppable. It is almost inevitable that you will someday face an attack. You **need **to learn to defend yourself against these creatures. Even if you have to suffer Mr. Finnegan's presence for it. And after all, it will take only a few classes for you to learn it. That shouldn't be too hard" McGonagall nodded firmly as if confirming Harry's acceptance of the situation.

Harry grumbled. What was the point? He could shout at the both of them and storm off only to have some prefect come up to him telling him that Dumbledore wants to see him. After listening to three hours of lectures on forgiveness, dealing with pain, blah blah blah…he could yell at Dumbledore and walk out again. And in the end one of the Professors would probably just give him detention and he'd have to do this then. Of course he could refuse to go to detention but that would start a similar chain reaction.

Harry left the defense class and returned to the Gryffindor Tower. After getting his stuff and the cubs from the dorms, he sat down in the Common Room to finish his homework. He re-read the letter he had received after that. And finally, he shifted to the newspapers he had gotten of last year. He had to stop reading after the first three copies that covered the beginning of his trial after the Tournament. He was fuming with anger over the injustice of it all over again. This time it was much more profound. At that time, he had been too consumed with grief to really be angry. But now, reading some of the things his friends and classmates had told the reporters made his blood boil. He walked over to one of the windows in the now-empty Common Room and threw it open. As the cool night breeze swept in, he leaned against the window sill and tried to calm down. The things he had read kept coming back to him. His friends had given the reporters detailed accounts of some of the things that had happened during Harry's first four years at Hogwarts. Everything about him, his quiet nature, his lack of concentration in some classes, his grades, his hobbies, absolutely everything about him had been told in such a way as if confirming his evilness. _In his First Year, Potter misled a couple of his friends and managed to lose 150 points for Gryffindor for breaking school rules._ They seemed to have forgotten that he had also stopped Voldemort from returning as an immortal. _In his Second Year, we found out he was a Parselmouth. He was the one who opened the Chamber of Secrets and released the basilisk to kill off muggleborn students. He must have, no one else in the school is a Parselmouth and that was the only way the Chamber could be opened. It was all hushed up once the basilisk died of course. Heaven forbid anyone accuse the boy-who-lived of endangering the school._ So, the basilisk just dropped dead all of a sudden? The 400 points that Gryffindor earned for it and Harry's 'Award for Special Services to the School' must have been a figment of his imagination too, right? _And in his Third Year, Sirius Black escaped from Azkaban and tried to contact him many times. No doubt, together they would have destroyed Hogwarts if they had half the chance._ What? Oh, right! Black's name wasn't cleared until just four months ago.

Harry straightened with the intention to go up to bed but as he looked at the editions of Daily Prophet lying near his school books, he sighed and sat down. What the heck, he might as well read all of them now. He was bound to get upset every time he started reading them so it would be better to just get it over and done with. It was three in the morning when Harry put down the final edition which happened to be yesterday's paper. Apparently the reporters had tried to seek him out at King's Cross the day before yesterday but had been unable to do so. Dumbledore must have prevented them. Even without a personal interview the reporters had written loads of nonsense based on their own presumptions. Harry wasn't pleased. There must be some laws or something that prevented these idiots from constantly publishing whatever fanciful ideas they had in their heads. Even if there were no such laws, Harry Potter was going to make sure those reporters learnt to double-check everything they published about the-boy-who-lived from now on. With that mission foremost in mind, Harry went to bed, his thoughts on the stuff he would have to find out from the library the next day.

First lesson of the next day was Double Potions. Oh, joy. Harry's feelings towards Potions class had remained unchanged. He entered the dungeons just slightly early and found a place to sit. Taking out his cauldron and book, he sat down to read a book on complex curses that he had picked off at the library. It was proving to be very interesting. He was still reading when the class settled down and Snape entered.

"Well, well, well. Looks like our celebrity is back. So nice of you to join us Potter. You hardly deserve to be here. Your friends at least scraped through Fifth Year but you didn't even bother to attend. But the Headmaster believes you are up to it. We can't disagree with him now can we? So, since you are so brilliant, you can skip a year of schooling, you can no doubt answer a few simple questions I have for you. What is the main ingredient of a snake poison antidote?" Snape smiled maliciously.

"I don't know" Harry answered neutrally.

"Ten points from Gryffindor. Let's try again. Why is powdered griffin claw added to a blood freezing potion?"

"I don't know" Harry didn't look the least bit concerned.

"Ten points from Gryffindor for your severely deteriorated intellect and five points from Gryffindor for your lack of effort."

Harry couldn't help but snort at this.

"Another ten points for your disrespect Potter" Snape sneered at him.

"You think taking points from Gryffindor will upset me? Take as many as you like, I honestly don't care." Harry didn't even look directly at him, his eyes on the scratch on the cover of the book, fingers tracing the tear as if he didn't have a care in the world.

He was smiling inwardly because he knew Snape was riled up.

"Well since House points mean nothing to you, then you should be disciplined through.."

"You can't give me detention, _Professor_. I have extra classes every evening and you need Dumbledore's permission if you want to give me weekend detention" Harry smiled coolly as he interrupted Snape.

Harry was pleased to note that Snape was beyond furious. He just smirked as Snape stood there breathing heavily as if he was fighting the urge to curse him. Snape turned on his heel and strode back to the front of the class and snapped out instructions for the class. He remained in a foul mood for the rest of the lesson.

Harry exited the classroom after everyone else had already left since Snape had held him back to assign an extra essay just for him. He found Malfoy and his buddies waiting for him in the deserted part of the dungeons that led to the stairs.

"So, back again Potter? Why don't you just shrivel up and die like you're supposed to?" Malfoy sneered crossing his arms as Crabbe and Goyle guffawed.

"What do you want Malfoy? Aren't you tired of the same old taunts and childish fighting?"

"There is nothing childish about a proper wizard's duel. Too bad you always chicken out before we can get anywhere" Malfoy twirled his wand lazily.

Keeping a wary eye on Malfoy, Harry reached for his own wand. He wouldn't put it past Malfoy to hex him without warning.

"But today, today I am going to make you pay" Malfoy's eyes held a blind fury that had never been there before.

"_Expelliarmus!_" Malfoy shouted before Harry could aim his own wand properly.

Harry's wand flew out of his hand and into Malfoy's before he could react.

"Too bad you don't even have any friends who could come to your pathetic rescue." Malfoy sneered.

"I don't need any friends, Malfoy" he had tolerated enough.

Harry hissed something and Malfoy let out a cry of pain. Harry's wand flew out of Malfoy's hand and returned to him. Malfoy was holding his hand in pain where angry red boils were appearing.

"This is a very special wand, Malfoy. It can only be used by parselmouths, as in me. Next time, just stay away and keep your mouth shut if you want to avoid more pain. Hey, you goons! Get this dimwit to the hospital wing before the basilisk poison kills him."

"Too bad intelligence isn't for sale. Your parents would probably have been more than happy to buy you some brains" Harry threw over his shoulder as he strolled over to the staircase.

A part of him wanted to stay around and make sure those two blokes got the prat to the hospital wing before he dropped dead. But he shrugged and continued on his way instead. He was beginning to regret his parting remark. He had found out about Lucius Malfoy's death only the night ago in one of the Daily Prophet editions. Malfoy was killed in crossfire during a raid by aurors on a death-eater camp.

During lunch in the Great Hall, Dumbledore made an announcement. There were no afternoon classes for the day since the teachers had a special meeting. Students were free to do what they liked. This announcement caused the Great Hall to buzz with chatter the way it used to in the past years. Harry was glad to get a break from all the staring from his fellow school mates. Everyone was wondering what the cause of this sudden teachers' meeting was. Harry heard snatches of conversation around him.

"Maybe a new Dark Lord has risen. Not all the Death-Eaters were captured..."

"I know why. The centaurs in the Forbidden Forest are going to attack Hogwarts. I heard Lisa tell…"

"No, no. I'm telling you, it is the Plague. Professor Trelawney warned us the other day. I always knew she was a great Seer…"

_Idiots_, Harry thought contemptuously. _What will it take to teach them not to jump to conclusions?_  Harry decided to spend the rest of the day in the library. He was actually glad to have some free time to study. There was still so much to do. The reporters had to be dealt with. Harry deposited his bag on a remote table in the library before going in search of the books that he needed. The library filled up with students while he was searching. As he was flipping through one book, Harry couldn't help but overhear a conversation from a table nearby.

"I really don't know the answer to these Herbology questions. I tried looking in so many books but I just can't find anything about this Crocodile's Tongue. Is it a sea plant or something?" the voice sounded like a frustrated Seamus Finnegan.

"Ask Hermione. She probably knows the answer" Harry would recognize Ron Weasley's voice anywhere.

"She's not here. And if Hermione is not in the library, then I have no idea where to look for her" Seamus complained.

"Ask Neville then. He is over there sitting with that Ravenclaw girl. What's her name again?" Dean Thomas asked.

"Loony Lovegood. How can you forget?" Ron again.

"Ask Neville? Right, and I might also stop by to invite Harry to come and join us, shall I? Are you crazy? Neville probably wouldn't even pass me a rock so I could smash my head with it. I was so horrible to him all of last year" Seamus groaned.

Harry was intrigued enough to stay there, hidden from view by a tall bookshelf, open book forgotten in his hands.

"You weren't the only one. I came up with all those nasty names that we called him. The Slytherins had nothing on us last year. Poor Neville, he didn't deserve all that." Dean sighed.

"Neither did Harry." Ron's voice was choked.

After that there was only silence. Harry returned to his table with the book, wondering what all that was about. That girl he had seen with Neville wasn't his girlfriend? Or was she? What did all that have to do with Harry anyway? He couldn't see the connection.

"Harry? Hi, I have a message from Professor Lupin for you. He says the extra class is still on this evening but it will start half an hour late" the Ravenclaw Head Boy was standing in front of Harry's table, smiling gently.

Harry had heard someone call him 'Nathan' in the Great Hall the other day. Harry smiled back. Nathan was practically a stranger to him.

"So, you're okay with that?" he asked.

Harry nodded thinking about Professor Lupin. Reading the paper last night had revealed that Lupin was under the Luscar curse during Harry's trial. So, basically he couldn't have come to Harry's rescue. Harry wasn't convinced that Lupin would have supported him even if he was able to but since the choice had been taken out of Lupin's hands, Harry couldn't really be mad at him. He was far from becoming buddies with Lupin but at least now classes with him would be more tolerable.

"Right. See you around" Nathan turned to walk away.

"Hey, wait….Nathan, right? Can I ask you something?" Nathan nodded at Harry's question.

"Sure, what is it?"

"Who is that Ravenclaw girl sitting with Neville Longbottom? You know Neville, don't you? That girl, her name is Lovegood or something" Nathan's smile had faltered.

"Luna Lovegood. She is in Fifth Year. She and Neville became close friends over the last year" Nathan's voice was very sober.

"How come?" Harry asked wondering whether the boy would tell him the whole story.

 Nathan was quiet for a moment. He sighed and nodded to himself before sitting down in front of Harry. He told Harry what happened the year before. After Harry was expelled from Hogwarts, everyone was talking about how he had gone Dark and was responsible for the all the deaths. Everyone believed he had done it. Everyone except Neville and Luna. Neville had declared that he believed Harry was innocent. That made everyone in Gryffindor and the rest of the school scoff at him. He was ridiculed and scorned. Luna was a strange girl by nature. Her father was editor to a magazine that published very bizarre stuff. She also announced that she believed in Harry's innocence. Ever since then, the two of them had suffered nothing but jeers and insults from everyone. That's how they became friends. They were called names and everyone made fun of them. Since they were rejected by all their normal friends, they were together most of the time. Harry sat thinking about it long after Nathan had left. So there had been someone who believed in his innocence after all.

The next hour was spent studying Ancient Runes. He had just finished his essay when he heard muffled voices nearby. Harry looked up from his book. All the students sitting at the tables near him were quiet and the conversations of others a bit farther were just a distant buzz. From his place at the back of the library, he could see the door and the counter where Madam Pince was currently seated, busy checking a long list and all the tables filled with students. He had returned back to his work when he heard it.

A muffled voice said something like "Just come with me,…..?"

With that, one Hermione Granger followed by one Ron Weasley appeared from behind a bookshelf slightly ahead of Harry's table. The two came to stand directly in front of Harry's table. Hermione looked at Harry then lowered her gaze to the floor. Ron was no more successful in meeting his eye.

"Uhhhmmm…..hi, Harry!…..Uhmm…Professor Vector said that…..she said……that maybe…..maybe I could…..you know…..h-he…uhm….I mean, hhe-help you with your Arithmancy since…since you're just starting this year?" Hermione's croaky voice died away.

She seemed to be near tears, her overbright eyes and sunken face added to her timid and uncertain stance making her look pathetic. Behind her, Ron looked every bit as wretched with a very pale and tired face and awfully disheveled uniform. Harry knew this was all because of him but he wasn't the least bit sorry for it. In fact, he felt a morbid satisfaction at seeing them suffer.

"I don't need you help. Go away" he said coldly.

"….Ha-Harry….please….I know you hate me but….just let me help you….I.."

"I _said_ I don't need your help. Just go away and leave me alone" Harry kept his voice low, noticing that the other students were beginning to turn away from their work to watch them. He remained immobile, sitting in his chair and keeping his eyes on the table.

"Harry, please….won't you let Hermione help you….she can…." Ron tried to say.

"Shut up! I don't need either of you. I don't want your help. Just get lost before I lose my temper" Harry's voice had risen a few notches.

"You have every right to be angry, Harry but please just think about this for a second. Professor McGonagall told me about your double exams at the end of the year and you also have two whole new subjects and… Professor McGonagall thinks it would be best if I could study with you since…" Hermione was just beginning to speak clearly but Harry interrupted.

"I don't _care_ what McGonagall thinks. I will **not **study with you. So just stay the hell away from me" Harry got up and began to pack away his books.

"Hermione just wants to help. If you'd only let her study with you…." Ron was silenced by the intense fury that shone in Harry's eyes when he raised his head to glare at Ron before looking down again. Stuffing his quill into his bag, Harry lifted it in preparation to leave.

Knowing her chance was about to be over, Hermione gathered her courage and found her voice again.

"You have to let me help you. You are starting on two of the hardest subjects only this year and you have double exams. You have to catch up with last year's studies and prepare for OWLs and the Sixth Year finals. Even with the extra classes, you can't catch up on it all o your own. **You need my help!**" Hermione's voice ended on a shrill note as she followed Harry who was walking away from his table.

Hermione's last sentence brought Harry to a halt. Everyone in the library was utterly silent, watching him stand there with his back to Ron and Hermione who were both holding there breaths.

Harry's bag was dropped to the floor as he turned around to face them. The look on his face must have been terrible judging by how his two ex-best friends took a step back.

"I need your help?" his voice was a mere whisper but everyone heard it in the complete silence.

"**I need your help? **I need your help to study for exams? You are willing to **help** me? Where were you when I was being accused of mass-murder? Why didn't you come to help me then? I needed your help like never before. **Why didn't you help me? Why? **Why didn't you even listen to me then?" Harry yelled at her.

And in that moment all the pain that he had been trying to keep buried since his release came pouring out in his words. It was as if a volcano had erupted inside him, the searing fire in his heart finally becoming too much, his pain spewing out like lava in his words.

"Why? Why weren't you there at my side? Why didn't you listen to me when I tried to explain? How could you believe I was capable of such a crime? Why didn't you figure it out if you were so smart? How many times, _how many times_ did I try to speak to you? Try to explain I wasn't responsible? Why didn't you two help me then?"

"The three of us have been together since First Year. You were there with me every time. Fighting to keep the Philosopher's Stone safe in First Year, fighting against the basilisk in the Second Year, finding Sirius Black in the Third Year and the Tournament in Fourth Year. What made you think I was so evil? What did I ever do to make you think I could be capable of killing so many people?"

"You were my _best friends_. You two were the most important people in my life. I would gladly lie down and die for you. I thought I was important to you too. I had always thought, no matter what everyone else said or thought about me, you two would always stand by me. To everyone else I was just a famous name. They had shown they didn't trust me long ago. The Slytherins hated me since the beginning. The Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs thought I was Slytherin's heir. The other Gryffindors would love me if I won Quidditch or hate me if I lost House Points. All of them were friends in name only, but not you two. I had thought you were my real friends. Couldn't you have just heard me out then? Just to humor me, even if you thought I was a murderer. Didn't I deserve at least that much after four years of friendship?"

"I might have been able to prove my innocence. But I couldn't. I didn't know anything about wizarding laws. I couldn't find out no matter how hard I tried. You weren't there to **help** me then, Hermione. You didn't bring me any books on wizarding laws. When everyone else turned against me, so did you two. You testified** against** me. Because of that I was sent to Azkaban. Because even my best friends admitted that I was an evil murderer."

"I spent a year in Azkaban. It seems more like a century. For over a year, I lived guarded by creatures that were my worst fear, reliving the most painful memories of my life, namely my parents' death and the memory of my friends abandoning me. You have no idea how much I have suffered. **Do you hear me? You have no idea.** I will never trust you again. You are not my friends, you never will be. I will never forgive you for what you did to me. NEVER!"

Harry's voice rang throughout the library. Everyone was as still as statues except Hermione. She had tears in her eyes since Harry's first sentence and by then her body was shaking with silent sobs, her hands clamped tightly to her mouth. Ron made no attempt to wipe away his tears either. As Harry's anger began to leave him, the pain began to overwhelm him and he could feel the sting in his eyes.

It was at that precise moment that Professor McGonagall came running into the library with her hat sitting crookedly on her head. Taking one look at the petrified Madam Pince, McGonagall followed her gaze to the trio standing in silence. Nathan, the Head Boy entered the library slightly behind her glancing warily to where the trio was standing. No one had noticed him slipping out to call McGonagall earlier. Professor McGonagall took a deep breath and strode over towards them.

"What is going on here?" she asked Harry calmly, putting one hand on Hermione's shoulder.

"I was just explaining that I don't **need** or **want **any help in my studies. And I would prefer to be left alone. And also that I am not willing to compromise on any issue here." Harry glared at McGonagall, daring her to say otherwise.

Before McGonagall could reply, there was a scurrying noise closing in and the next moment two tigercat cubs had launched themselves at Harry's legs. They growled and pawed at his robes, willing him to bend down. The sight of them seemed to calm Harry a little. He turned away from the other two and sighing, sat down at the table closest to him. The tigercats didn't waste a moment in climbing a chair then hopping onto the table to face Harry directly.

"I'm fine. I'm fine, guys. Will you calm down?" Harry sighed softly again as the cubs prowled on the desk restlessly, coming close occasionally as if to convince themselves that he was alright.

Sensing his troubled thoughts and his pain, the cubs came running there to help him, to protect him. Harry could feel calm thoughts coming from them, trying to soothe him, take away his pain. There was no doubt in his mind that they truly cared about him. He was important to them and they would never desert him like his friends had done. It finally brought a soft, sad smile on his face.

Harry retrieved is bag from the floor and stood up. He didn't look at anyone except McGonagall.

"I don't want a study partner. I will not agree to it no matter what. Nothing will change my mind" Harry looked at Hermione's tear-strained face as he said it.

With that, Harry stalked out of the library, head held high and two tigercat cubs following in his wake.


	12. Banshee Attack

**Chapter 12: Banshee Attack**

A long walk on the school grounds with the tigercats helped Harry calm down. He had known that the pain and anger bottled up inside him would come out eventually, he just hadn't expected it to happen so soon. His anguish hadn't lessened after all the yelling. After a while, when the cubs felt the havoc in Harry's mind reside, they began to enjoy their time outside. Harry let them roam freely and followed behind them at a sedate pace. Dinner was eaten in the kitchens before Harry left the cubs and headed for his extra defense class, his mind still on his conversation with Dobby. 

During dinner, he had seen the house-elves' work even more frenzied than usual. When he asked Dobby about the house-elves who were rushing out of the kitchen with buckets, cleaning rags and mysterious tubes of goo, Dobby told him they were off to clean the North tower. However, there had been a hint of lie in Dobby's words which were confirmed by him banging his head into the table.

"They are cleaning the _North__ Tower_ at **dinnertime**?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Yes, Harry Potter, sir." Dobby had replied dubiously before walking straight into the wall near him and howling in pain.

"Why?" Harry had asked cautiously.

"There is something big that is going to happen in Hogwarts, Harry Potter. The house-elves must prepare for it. We is not allowed to tell any students about it either" Dobby had answered looking pitifully at him.

Harry hadn't asked anything else but he was still very curious about it. But the extra class had put the matter out of his mind temporarily.

Professor Lupin was all business from the word go. The next two and a half hours were spent in deep concentration as Harry mastered the most complex sound blocking spell yet. It was hard work and by the time class ended, he was too exhausted to even think coherently. Professor Lupin told Harry to take a break and no extra class would be held the next day. Harry dragged himself back to the Tower and collapsed into a dreamless slumber for the rest of the night.

Harry had never seen Ron look as sick as he did the next day in Charms class and Hermione was nowhere to be seen. Later he overheard someone saying how Hermione was still lying sedated in the Hospital Wing since the day before. She had been close to breakdown the day before after the 'library incident' and the calming potion had absolutely no effect on her. Harry was surprised to find that he felt absolutely no guilt and very little concern for her. He was on his way to lunch when Professor McGonagall called him to her office.

When he was seated facing McGonagall, she tried to smile and offer him a ginger biscuit which he refused. Then she drew in a breath and explained why she had summoned him.

"Mr. Potter, you had been Gryffindor's Seeker since your first year here. It is time to take that place again. The Quidditch team will be beginning training sessions immediately this year for certain reasons and as such you need to start training with your team-mates. I presume you do not have a Quidditch uniform?" McGonagall looked almost nervous.

"No……No, my uniform was burned and destroyed by my dorm-mates" Harry's reply was serene.

"Well…yes…uhm, so you will be needing a new uniform….uhm…to start training..."

"Who exactly played Seeker for Gryffindor last year?" Harry asked leaning forward as if in interest.

"Uhm…it was Mr. Reed"

"And where is he now?"

"He is still here of course. He is in Forth Year" McGonagall answered uneasily.

"Why then am I chosen to be Seeker?"

"Well, Potter, you must know that you are an exceptional player. Youngest Seeker in century and all"

"Hmm…I did play well and I liked Quidditch a lot too…..But not anymore! I don't think I want to play Quidditch" Harry replied thoughtfully, leaning back in his chair.

"You don't? But you love Quidditch!" whatever McGonagall had been expecting, it wasn't this.

"No, I used to love Quidditch. I don't like it anymore and I don't want to join the team and play for Gryffindor" there was a ring of finality in his tone.

"But…you can't, Potter….the team needs you. We lost very badly last year. Surely, you want Gryffindor to win the Quidditch Cup."

"No, not really. To be honest, I really don't care whether Gryffindor wins or loses. It is of no importance to me."

"You can't be serious!" Professor McGonagall exclaimed.

"Indeed, I am very serious. I will not join the Quidditch team for as long as I am at Hogwarts. I think Mr. Reed will be able to play Seeker for Gryffindor. Hence, I don't need a uniform and I will not be training."

McGonagall could only stare at him.

"May I go to lunch now?" he asked.

She nodded mutely and he left the office. 

Lunch was just beginning in the Great Hall. Harry ate his calmly. He had loved Quidditch before, but he knew the game would never hold the same exhilaration for him like before. Joining the team would only mean he had to speak and get along with his team members. He didn't even have a uniform or a broomstick anymore. _Don't think about it! Don't think about it_, he ordered himself as his thoughts strayed to the Firebolt and his godfather.

Once again Dumbledore announced that there would be no afternoon classes for the day. Even Harry was beginning to get intrigued about this. As he left the Great Hall to go to the library again, he ran into Professor Lupin.

"Harry, I'm glad I ran into you. You remember that there will be no classes tonight. Your magic needs to recover from yesterday's hard training. Professor Dumbledore asked me to give you extra lessons tomorrow too. It is a Hogsmeade weekend and you won't be able to go so you will get special permission the next weekend to go to Hogsmeade if you like" Professor Lupin explained.

Harry listened as he described the whole day long Saturday class that would be focusing on defense against Veelas. After bidding him goodbye, Harry continued on his way to the library and seeing a copy of the day's Daily Prophet on a table in the library, sat down to read it. There was an article on him in the third page about his history and his parents' deaths. He cold feel the anger wash over him in waves but he continued reading anyway. At the end of the article, the reporter promised an exclusive article on Harry for the next week.

And that is how Harry came to spend the rest of his day trying to find a way to stop the reporters once and for all. When he grew tired of staring at law books, he browsed through a few curse and charms books. It was in one of those books that Harry found the spell Dumbledore had used in the courtroom to show all of Harry's memories to the court. Harry decided to learn the spell. He got an idea and searched for the appropriate spell and as luck would have it he found a perfect spell. This spell could be cast on many people simultaneously depending on the caster's magical ability. People under the 'Monovesit' spell could not move or look away until the spell was lifted. This spell would come in handy to teach those meddlesome reporters a lesson. They wanted to know how he felt, what he had been through, what it was like? Well, what better way than for them to experience it first-hand for themselves?

Harry spent the rest of the evening mastering the 'Monovesit' spell. After dinner, he spent four long hours studying nonstop until he managed to get a headache before bed. It was worth it, he thought. It was worth anything to keep up with his studies and foil everyone's plan to reconcile him with Sirius or Ron or Hermione or anyone. The next morning, after his daily two-hour workout, he had an early breakfast before going to his usual haunt. The Library. _I am becoming a nerd_, he thought ruefully. Harry stayed there until it was time to go for his extra class.

When he reached the defense classroom, he found his arch-enemy, Draco Malfoy standing outside the class.

"What are _you_ doing here?" both of them asked together.

Professor Lupin opened the door and ushered them both in before either could say anything else.

"Professor, why is _he_ here?" Harry asked.

"He is here for lessons, same as you" Lupin answered.

"Why does _he_ need lessons?" Malfoy asked fiercely.

"Same reason that you do. You are both here to learn to defend yourself against veelas. I can see some explanations are required."

"Harry, Draco here has veela blood. His father, Lucius Malfoy was half-veela. Half-veelas are slightly different than veelas. A half-veela can live like a normal wizard without any veela traits if left alone. But a half-veela takes on veela qualities if he or she is 'awakened' by other veelas. Veelas are a magical race with dwindling numbers so veela families are always on the lookout for half-veelas so that they can be 'awakened' and the veela race may not perish. Lucius Malfoy was 'awakened' when he went on a trip to Italy. An 'awakened' veela has the same need to bond with their chosen mates like other veelas. When Draco was born, we can say that Lucius was a veela so that makes Draco a half-veela. Draco does not wish to be 'awakened' and since he is now sixteen, veelas who are near enough can smell him and will try to 'awaken' him. That is why he is here." 

Harry had a scathing remark on the tip of his tongue as he turned to Malfoy but noticed the look of misery in his eyes and decided to keep quiet. Malfoy must miss his dad terribly for him to mourn so long.

"Draco, Harry might be a potential banshai. You have heard of banshees and how witches in terrible grief might become a banshee? A wizard can also become a male banshee otherwise known as a banshai. Though it is rare, we think it is a very real possibility in Harry's case. And you must have read about veelas and banshees being mortal enemies. Veelas can convert a banshai into a veela. We do not know whether veelas can convert a potential banshai but we won't take the risk."

"Now, I am aware that you two don't exactly like each other, but…"

The two students snorted at that statement.

"But, you will need to learn to get along at least a little. Both of you will be in Hogwarts for two years. If any veelas manage to trace either of you to Hogwarts, both of you will be….er…attacked. So you need to defend yourself **_and_** you need to learn to get along. You have more chance of survival if you stand together against any veelas. That is why you will train and practice together. First, we will start with the theory of these defensive spells…."

After almost two hours of studying the theory of the defensive spells, Lupin took the two boys outside for some practice. Neither student understood his reasons since they could have practiced in class just fine and both felt uneasy in case any other students were watching but they followed anyway. Lupin took them to a secluded part of the school grounds and they began practicing, sometimes working with each other when asked to do so by him. Harry learnt the spells faster than Malfoy.

Professor Lupin let them go for lunch before resuming the practice session outside again. The class ended late in the evening with Professor Lupin promising the worn-out boys that there would be more practice sessions in the next weeks.

That night, Harry had a strange dream. Dumbledore, Snape and McGonagall were down in the dungeons in what looked like the potions classroom. The tables must have been cleared away, the room was almost empty. There was a cauldron bubbling with a pale yellow mist frothing out of it. The three of them had their wands out and discussing something seriously while taking occasional glances at the gigantic books that lay open on the table in front of them. Harry could see them but he couldn't hear anything except a misty hum. Then Dumbledore looked up and saw him and saying something to the other teachers, approached Harry. Snape went to the cauldron and filled a large bowl with whatever was in it. McGonagall carried one particularly dusty and worn book and the two teachers came to stand behind Dumbledore. Dumbledore waved his wand in Harry's face and he felt himself becoming lighter. Harry closed his eyes and the hum continued. Harry was feeling almost like in a normal sleep when there was a loud fizzing sound like a cauldron bubbling over very near his ear. Harry woke up with a jolt to find himself in his bed in the dorms. Harry lay back and thought how real the dream had appeared before sleep took him over.

On Sunday, Harry spent all day mastering the 'thought show' spell. It was called the Lidate charm and it projected selected thoughts onto a huge 'mist' screen. Harry learnt how to choose and project certain memories. It took a lot of concentration and too much practice but he didn't give up. He missed lunch because he had completely forgotten about it. He didn't really know if the spell would ever really come in handy but he learnt it really well all the same. Little did he know that he would be using the spell before the end of the week.

On Monday, Harry received his first subscription of the Daily Prophet. He had owled the subscription form on Friday. When he opened the third page, he discovered the reason for all the tension in the Great Hall. The reporters had come to Hogsmeade last Saturday in hopes of catching him for an interview. When they couldn't get him, they had settled for some of the Hogwarts students who were willing to speak about him. Harry read through the article, his face turning a furious red in anger. He was enraged by the time he finished the article. He rose from his seat so fast, he upset a goblet of pumpkin juice. The students fell silent as the goblet rolled on the floor. They saw the Daily Prophet crushed in his fist as he stormed out of the Great Hall. Everyone remained silent for another moment before hushed whispering began. The students who had given statements to the Prophet looked slightly nervous.

Harry walked through the corridors at a rapid pace, trying to keep his anger in check. He had a class in ten minutes, he couldn't afford to blow up at anyone. As he walked along the classes, the things the other students had told the reporters kept ringing in his year.

_'Harry refused to join the Quidditch team. He's a good player, we need him but he won't play anymore. Guess he wants to punish us for not believing him last year.'  Katie Bell _

_'Harry Potter brought pet tigercats to school. Pet tigercats, I tell you! Deadly vicious and dangerous and he lets them free reign. One of these days, they'll maul someone to death. And he is beastly to his dorm-mates too.'  Andrew McCain_

_'Harry changed his electives. It's against the school rules actually but they let him. Everyone says it's because he doesn't want to forgive Professor Black. They say Professor Black, who teaches Care of Magical Creatures is Harry's godfather.'  Hannah Abbot_

_'Potter has become unbearable. He walks around as if he were a king. He shows disrespect for the teachers and he loses points for his House on purpose. He taunts the teachers that they can't even give him detention without asking Dumbledore. He's gets away with everything.'  Pansy Parkinson_

_'Harry has become a loner since he rejoined Hogwarts. Just two days ago he was in the library and his old best friends approached to apologize and to help him in his studies but he shouted and yelled at them. He never speaks to anyone anymore and when he does he is horrid to them. We know he has been through a lot but this is ridiculous.'  Ernie McMillan_

Harry felt like returning to the Great Hall and bashing their faces into the floor. Why couldn't they just leave him alone? How could they so easily forget what he had been through and what he had done for them all? If they expected him to accept apologies and go back to laughing and talking and being buddies, they were in for a shock. Harry remained in a foul mood for the rest of the day and even the teachers didn't admonish him for not paying attention. Later that day, he was summoned to Dumbledore's office.

Harry climbed the revolving steps to Dumbledore's office thinking he was probably called up for not paying attention in class or Dumbledore wanted to talk about the newspaper article. What he didn't expect was to see Professor Sirius Black seated in one of the two chairs facing Dumbledore across his enormous desk. Dumbledore welcomed him warmly and told him to take the seat beside Sirius. Harry sat down, waiting to know why he had been summoned. The brief glimpse he got of his godfather's face showed him as gaunt and bone-weary as his fugitive days even if now he was no longer as skeletal thin as before. Sirius tried to smile hopefully at his godson but Harry's glacial attitude discouraged him and his smile drooped pitifully.

Dumbledore explained that Sirius had just received Harry's guardianship approval from the ministry. He had applied after Harry's trial and now all the legal proceedings had been taken care of. Now all Harry had to do was sign the legal papers and Sirius would become his legal guardian. The Dursleys would receive an official notification that they would never be seeing Harry again.

Dumbledore tried his best to make it all sound great but even he realized Harry's great opposition to the idea by the way he had stiffened and his face became grim.

"I don't want Sirius Black to become my guardian. I am perfectly fine with the Dursleys and I shall remain with them for the next two summers. I will not sign this" Harry stated calmly although he was boiling with anger.

Once again other people tried to make all the decisions for him and tell him what he should do with his life. Truth be told, he was getting a bit tired of all this high-handedness.

"Harry, please think about this. Sirius has waited the longest time to take you home with him. Your parents made him your guardian. It was your parents wish that you stay with him. And I am sure Sirius will take better care of you than the Dursleys." Dumbledore pointed out.

"Yes, Ha-Harry. You can't know how sorry I am that I didn't…that…that I didn't believe you when you told me you were innocent. Please, please just give me a chance, Harry. I will make it up to you, even if…even if it takes the rest of my life, Harry. Anything for you. I truly love you as if you were my own son. I can't see you like this, all alone and suffering. Please, **_please_** just give me a chance, Harry. I'm begging you. You have suffered so much, you have suffered enough. I won't let anything bad happen to you _ever_ again. I just want to see you smile again. **Please** let me take care of you. Please say you'll come back with me. Please come and live with me. Harry, I can't go on, I can't live with myself if you refuse. I don't….I don't know what I'll do if you don't let me at least _try_ to make up for all you've been through." Sirius Black had lived through so much strife and never shed a tear. Now he couldn't hold back the tears coursing down his face.

Harry turned his face to look at him. He saw the anguish in his eyes. The pure torture he was feeling and the sincerity of his words. For a moment, he wanted to reach out and touch Sirius' face, to take away that pain and make him smile again. Just as his hand was about to rise, he caught himself and drew back in his chair.

"No!" he said instead, remembering that time when he had gone to Sirius filled with anguish himself. He had pleaded and begged with Sirius too. But Sirius hadn't believed him, hadn't wanted to look at him or listen to him explain. "No!" he said again, remembering how Sirius had turned away from him in his greatest moment of need. His rejection had broken Harry. It had destroyed Harry's zeal to go on fighting. "NO!" he shouted getting up when he remembered how much of the torture he had suffered at the hand of the dementors were caused by his godfather's memories.

"Harry, please calm down. You don't have to answer right now. Take some time to think carefully about this before you make up your mind. You don't have to…"

"NO! My decision is made. I will not accept _him_ as my guardian. Nothing you say can sway me. I will not put myself through that kind of pain again. No matter what happens, I will not change my mind. Haven't I been through enough? Isn't it enough that I lived a year in hell and came back to rid the world of the monster called Voldemort? Why must I endure more? When will everyone just leave me alone to live my life in peace? You want me to let _him _become my guardian so he can feel better and get rid of the guilt. What about what **I **want? Doesn't anyone care about that? Can't I just live like I want to? I've done what was expected of me and I've had just about enough of all this meddling in my life. Just…just leave me alone. Stay away from me, both of you." Harry backed away and left Dumbledore's office, running down the stairs when he heard Sirius' voice calling after him and getting closer.

Siyaa and Tawreek found him by the lake a few moments later. Harry stayed there for an hour, running his hand through Tawreek's fur who sat quietly by his side while Siyaa played at the lake's edge running up to him occasionally to growl at him.

Harry spent the rest of his day, immersed in his studies which helped keep his mind off Sirius and all Harry's shattered dreams that were built around him. His attention began to waver during extra class with Lupin but he must have spoken to Sirius because he didn't tell Harry to concentrate like he usually did. Malfoy managed to catch up with Harry in the defensive spells by the time class ended.

After a restless night's sleep, Harry woke up with a foreboding sensation in the pit of his stomach. The morning's first lesson was Herbology with the Hufflepuffs. Once Harry saw Ernie there, he spent the rest of class glaring at him and Ernie in turn kept shifting so that something could block him from Harry's sight. Harry's attention was off enough that the dangerous carnivore plant they were handling managed to attack Harry. The wound in Harry's leg began to bleed profusely. Madam Sprout came hurriedly and cast a blood freezing charm on the wound. It looked as if the plant had tried to take a bite out of his flesh. After checking his leg closely, Madam Sprout told Harry to head for the Hospital wing in case the plant's sting-like thorns had released poison into Harry's leg. Harry refused to go and said he was fine. Madam Sprout would have argued but one look into his accusing eyes and she backed down. She was still ashamed over how she had behaved when Harry had been thought a cold-blooded murderer.

The wound didn't bleed anymore but as the day progressed, the pain got worse. At lunch, Harry stopped by the library and checked out a big book on plant poisons and healing charms and potions for them. By night-time Harry walked with a limp because pressure on the wound made pain shoot out throughout that leg. That night, after dinner Harry was sitting on his bed in the dorm, his legs stretched out to rest the wound. He had looked through the book and found a healing charm but he was so drained that he just rested on his bed. He took out his parents' picture and leaning his head on the pillow against the headboard, smiled at his parents. They still looked every bit as jubilant as when the picture had not been charred on the edges. They smiled up at him happily and he couldn't help but smile back even if his smile was a little sad.

It was at that moment when Dean and Seamus walked into the dorm. They saw Harry's sad smile and the singed photo in his hands and felt like the lowest dirt. Harry looked up and seeing them there, clutched the picture to his chest in an instinctive urge to protect it. The two boys felt like they had been kicked when they were down seeing Harry's distrust. Harry slipped the picture into his pocket glaring at them defensively. Neville walked into the dorm and turned to see what they were looking at. When he looked at Harry, he saw the open wound on his leg and made an exclamation.

He rushed to Harry's side and tried to help him out of bed, babbling about getting to the Hospital wing. Harry stopped him, saying clearly that he didn't want to go to the Hospital wing. Neville was clearly frantic. That was a very dangerous wound, the plant's poison could have lifelong effects. Harry had to take the antidote immediately. He had already wasted so much time since the morning, but Harry remained firm. Neville was clutching his hair in panic as he rushed out of the dorms. Harry had very good reason to not go to see Madam Pomfrey. He still felt bitter every time he remembered the night of the Third Task.

After Professor McGonagall had taken Harry to Gryffindor Tower to retrieve his non-existent belongings, they exited through the portrait hole, Harry clutching his parents' picture to his chest. Stepping outside, McGonagall noticed for the first time the blood footsteps that Harry had made coming up with her earlier. Glancing at his still bleeding leg, McGonagall's lips had thinned and she told him to follow her to the Hospital wing, glaring fiercely at him as if he had wounded himself just to irritate her.

Harry had followed her miserably, thinking that as numb and unreal as he felt, maybe things would be alright anyway. Madam Pomfrey would snap at him and curse the world in general for being dangerous before ordering him into a pair of pyjamas and feeding him some foul potion. Harry would go to sleep in the empty Hospital wing and when he woke up the next day, everything would be alright again. A small part of his brain knew it couldn't happen but the suggestion was strong in his mind only to be shattered as he entered the Hospital wing. Dead bodies and severely injured people occupied every bed, people rushing around, trying to ease the pain or hold the hands of their hurt friends or relatives. 

Harry stayed by the door as McGonagall called Madam Pomfrey. One young man rose from a woman's bedside and made to come towards Harry with murder in his eyes only to be held back by two girls. Madam Pomfrey cast an ugly look at Harry before enquiring why McGonagall was there. McGonagall explained about Harry's leg and Madam Pomfrey turned to him, taking a brief glimpse at his bleeding leg. She crossed her arms across her chest.

"Well, it doesn't look life-threatening. And even if he loses the leg, I won't be the least sorry. He deserves all the pain he gets. YOU here me boy? I wouldn't help you even if you were dying. Get out of my Hospital wing and don't you ever come here looking for help. I hope to God you die a slow, painful death. Now, GET your filthy self out of here. Don't come back. Don't ever come back. You deserve no mercy. Get out. GET OUT!" Madam Pomfrey lost her composure and shouted at him. Everyone in the hospital wing stared at him hatefully before he turned away and walked out.

Harry was brought back to the present by the commotion that came from the Common Room. Thundering footsteps clambered up the stairs and Neville ran in followed by Madam Pomfrey. She looked exactly as he remembered her. Only he had never seen her look so very distressed and pained.

"Mr. Potter, oh what have you done? Why didn't you come to the Hospital wing when you got hurt? Here, let me look at that..." she approached his bed.

Harry retreated, sliding back away from her. She stopped for a second, a tormented expression on her face. Then she was moving again.

"No! Stay away. I don't want your help. Go away, just leave me alone." Harry couldn't hide the pain in his voice. The memory had just resurfaced after so long, he felt raw all over again.

Madam Pomfrey stopped, her eyes filling with tears. She knew only too well why he hadn't come to her when he was hurt. She had broken the oath she had taken when she graduated as a Healer. She hadn't accepted every patient and done her best for him without any animosity or bad feeling stopping her from doing what was her sworn duty.

"Don't be silly, Mr. Potter. Now let Madam Pomfrey look at that wound. I cannot comprehend why you didn't go straight to her when you got hurt" Professor McGonagall said briskly as she walked in and came to the other side of his bed.

Of course, she knew only too well why he hadn't gone to see Madam Pomfrey. He had a proud and stubborn streak she had noticed ever since she had met him. Her heart ached for this student who had grown to be so dear to her over the years. She blinked back the tears, snapping at Madam Pomfrey to get going.

Madam Pomfrey was shaken out of her stupor and sat down on the bed beside Harry. After checking the wound, she applied a salve on it. She told Professor McGonagall that the antidote was in the Hospital wing and she would need to keep him under observation for the night. Harry protested indignantly but it was a weakened objection. The poison was finally taking over, making him drowsy and lethargic. He was rushed off to the hospital wing despite his protests and fed a foul potion before being put to sleep in one of the beds. What had once been his dearest wish was becoming a reality over a year later. Funny, he didn't feel all that happy. He fell asleep with that thought.

Harry woke up early the next morning as had become his habit. The tigercats were there with him, Siyaa curled up on his side and Tawreek near his feet. He found Madam Pomfrey asleep in a chair by his bedside. When he moved, the bed creaked and she woke up.

"Mr. Potter, you're awake. Here, let me check your leg. Yes, it looks almost healed."

"Where are my clothes?" she looked saddened by his abrupt question but she got up and retrieved them.

She handed him his clothes, before saying in a subdued voice that she would get the goblet of reviving potion for him while he changed. Harry put on his uniform behind the curtains and she was ready with a goblet when he came out. Harry took it and drank the contents, handing it back into her waiting hands. Then he called the cubs and left without a backward glance. He couldn't help but feel guilty for being so brusque with her. She had helped him after all. Harry forced the matter out of his mind, limping slightly as he descended the stairs to the Entrance Hall. As he was approaching the Great Hall, Professor Snape came up the stairs from the dungeons, stopping him just outside the Great Hall doors.

"Well, well, well, Potter! I heard you refused to join the Quidditch team. What is this, a new attention-seeking ploy? You are just arrogant enough to think everyone would go down on their knees to beg you to join Quidditch. Well, you can wait all you like, no one is coming to beg you. When will you turn from your pompous ways? One would have thought living in Azkaban for a year would put a damper on that ego, but no. Still every bit as bigheaded as before. You father was like that too. Every bit as conceited as you. Wasn't good at anything else except a little Quidditch. He thought he was above the rules too, just like you. See where that got him? If he were…"

"SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP! Don't you dare say another word about my father! I've had just about enough of you. You are so sick, you won't even let go of a little schoolboy rivalry even after he is dead. What the hell are you trying to prove? That you are better than him? I'm sick of hearing you taunt me or my father. Just shut up about it. My parents are the only two people in this WORLD who mean anything to me. I will not hear another wrong word about them. I'm sick of this! If you have a bone to pick with my father, you will have to wait until you die then you can go find him and the two of you can fight and argue all you like. Just keep your mouth shut about it." Harry stormed into the Great Hall.

The students had whispered and watched Snape speak to Harry outside. Everyone had of course heard him shouting at Snape. McGonagall was rushing down the Hall to try and calm Harry. Snape was stalking in after Harry. None of the students had ever seen him so livid before.

"Mr. Potter, please follow me to my office. We need to speak…"

"I'm not going anywhere. If you have to speak, then speak to him. I cannot take it anymore. I've had enough of his taunts about my dead father. If he opens his mouths again, I will hex him and to hell with the consequences." Harry pointed an angry finger in Snape's direction.

"I'm sick of it. I'm sick of it all. People discussing me, my family as if we were just something made for their entertainment. My parents have been dead for fifteen years yet their deaths are discussed in detail in the Daily Prophet just last week. Their death wasn't some circus show that was done for everybody's amusement."

"And me…what about me? Am I just some freak put on show for this world? How dare people assume they can write about me or speak about me? How dare you think you are allowed to say how I should and shouldn't act? How dare you speak to reporters giving interviews about my behaviour?"

Harry spun around glaring accusingly at the students there.

"We have the right to say what we fe-feel" Ernie McMillan's defying statement froze when Harry spun around to glare at him.

"No, you have no right to say what you feel. What do you know about what I've been through? Have you ever suffered a thousandth of it? No, never. You've all lived happily, safe with your friends and family while I have suffered alone. You have all worried about tests and exams when I have had to worry about Voldemort. Look at you, even now you flinch at his name, even when you know he is already dead. I was the one who killed him. I was the one who suffered in Azkaban for a year for _your _ignorance. Yes, _your_ ignorance. It hadn't been Death eaters who put me in Azkaban, it had been all of you, who were supposed to be on my side."

"Do you even know what I have been through? Do you have any idea? My best friends and people I thought of as family turning their backs on me. Sent to the most fearsome wizard prison. Guarded by my worst fear. Yes, my worst fear are dementors. Having visions of Voldemort's doings every night. Suffering every Cruciatus that Voldemort cast, through the link of my scar. Suffering the pain of death every time he killed someone."

"No, you have no idea. That is why you could condemn me when I was accused a murderer. That is why you can say today that I'm not acting like I should. You expect me to forgive and forget? Go back to laughing and pranking like any other student? You think the horrors I have suffered can be put behind me so easily? You don't know what it was like. You don't know what it was like, until now. Now, you will know a taste of what I have suffered." Harry smiled coldly.

Many students were standing up in fear. The teachers had all left their seats too and McGonagall and Snape were standing not far away from him. Harry didn't care. They couldn't stop him. He whipped out his wand and cast the most powerful locking charm which he had learnt on the Great Hall doors. They slammed shut with finality. Harry raised his wand straight above his head and cast the 'Monovesit' charm. Immediately, all movement in the Hall stopped.

"Now, you will know a little of the horror I have suffered. Ernie, you were very much ready to share how you felt about it all. The next time you see a reporter, I'd like to see you try and explain how you feel about this. Last year, Voldemort had personally killed a family. They had the same last name as yours. A husband and wife with a son and a younger daughter. Cousin family, perhaps? You probably only heard of their deaths and went to the funerals. Would you like to see how they died? Would you like to **_feel_** what I have **_felt_** every night while I was in Azkaban? You shall, you all shall. May you will learn something from it" another cold smile at Ernie's terrified and frozen face, before Harry turned to the closed doors and conjured the misty screen.

What followed that was an incident so gruesome that it was etched into the memories of everyone forever. The vision started with a family having dinner together happily. Then the cozy house was raided by Death Eaters before Voldemort himself arrived. The painfully slow and torturous deaths of the family was carried out by Voldemort himself. The whole episode was beyond horrifying. Many of the students would have ran out crying or vomited if the charm hadn't held them frozen. They had no choice but to watch until the memory ended. Once the misty screen faded, Harry turned to look at everyone there.

"My head is filled with such memories. I have had to live with them, have them replayed again and again whenever dementors came near my cell in Azkaban. I have had to live with it because you, all of you abandoned me. You put me in Azkaban. You forced me to live with all that all alone. So, how do you expect me to be normal, to behave normally?" Harry asked before he raised his wand and released the freezing and locking charm.

Ernie McMillan collapsed, crying unrestrainedly. Hermione and Ron were huddled together, tears streaming from their eyes. Many students began to run out of the Hall. Others remained frozen in their places, looking at him through tears. The teachers stood unmoving.

Slowly, tiredly Harry exited the Great Hall. He walked over the school grounds and sat down in front of Hagrid's cabin. It was too much, he didn't think he had the strength to go on. He didn't think he had the strength to face all this anymore. He wished Hagrid was there. Maybe Hagrid could have calmed him, taken away all this agony with his bucket-sized mug of tea, offerings of rock cakes and effusive smile. Harry leaned his head wearily against a pole. His mind was oddly numb in that moment. And then he heard a faint scream. The faint scream began to grow closer, and now there were two screaming voices. And then there were three. Some instinct inside him was telling him to run. Harry got up and began to walk briskly towards the castle.

Professor Dumbledore strode swiftly into the Great Hall to find it in complete turmoil. Students were crying everywhere and teachers were just standing frozen. Seeing McGonagall and Snape halfway down the Hall, he walked to them.

"Minerva, Severus, where is Harry? It is of the utmost importance that he be found right now."

"I…he…I…I think he went outside" Professor McGonagall didn't seem like herself as she said it.

"Good lord" Dumbledore's exclamation brought many out of their stupor. The forever calm, headmaster almost ran out of the Hall and all the teachers and most of the students followed behind him urgently.

They walked outside to see Harry walking back towards the castle from the direction of Hagrid's hut and shrill screaming noises coming from far away. They followed the headmaster's gaze and saw movement in the gray, cloudy morning sky. As they watched, the small spots in the sky grew and came closer. Before anyone of them could think much, the creatures in the sky landed. They were a colony of banshees and they had landed all around Harry. The teachers and students could only gape.  Harry looked their way, there was despair in his eyes. They began to run towards him.

Before he knew it, Harry was surrounded by banshees. He looked around and couldn't see a way out. He looked back to see Dumbledore, teachers and some students standing in front of the castle. They were running towards him. They wouldn't be able to get to him, the banshees had surrounded him in two wide circles. The first circle, turned to face him, the second facing outwards. Harry took out his wand and prepared to fight their assault.


	13. The Ritual

A/N: The part with Sirius during the banshee attack was inspired by my sister, Cyra. Personally, I'm not satisfied with this chapter. It seemed filled with a dark beauty when I imagined it but I don't think I managed to capture it. Oh, well…

**Chapter 13:  The Ritual**

_Before he knew it, Harry was surrounded by banshees. He looked around and couldn't see a way out. He looked back to see Dumbledore, teachers and some students standing in front of the castle. They were running towards him. They wouldn't be able to get to him, the banshees had surrounded him in two wide circles. The first circle, turned to face him, the second facing outwards. Harry took out his wand and prepared to fight their assault._

As the crowd of students and teachers got closer to where Harry was standing, two of the banshees in the outer circle facing them, let out very shrill screams, causing every human within hearing distance to cover their ears in pain. Harry almost doubled over with pain. The moment the banshees stopped screaming, he straightened up and drawing a ragged breath, lifted his wand. Harry bellowed the incantation of the sound blocking spell and for a second a bubble shot out of is wand surrounding him before becoming invisible once the bubble completely enveloped him. One of the banshees in the inner circle facing him opened her mouth but Harry couldn't hear her scream. The others however did, and at once clapped their hands over their ears. Once the banshee scream ended, Dumbledore, McGonagall and Lupin stepped forward and after speaking to each other, all cast a spell together, a fluid blue shield emanated out of their wands and joined together to build an invisible barrier between the banshees and them.  At that moment, a second banshee in the inner circle facing Harry began to scream but this time all humans were protected from it. Harry knew he would have to renew the sound block because it had begun to vibrate.

Once the second banshee's scream died, Harry quickly released the sound spell and began to recast it. But unlike the last time, there was no pause this time and another banshee began screaming. Harry still managed to cast the spell but he staggered once the spell was done and the scream blocked out. The few seconds that he had heard the scream, it had been as if something cold was trickling in through his ear. It was like cold blood flowing inwards and freezing everything it touched, sapping his energy. He saw Dumbledore's face carved in deep concern, close to despair. He saw Lupin nodding at him encouragingly as if willing him not to give up.

Harry looked at the banshees themselves. It was strange to be surrounded by so many white-haired figures. True to his lessons, they were dressed in flowing gray robes with the banshee necklace around their throats. Their robes had bits of gauzy flowing material everywhere that made it look as if the garment was torn in places. There were eight or nine banshees facing him and forming the inner circle. There were around twelve of them on the outer circle with their backs to Harry, looking out for any threats. Two of the banshees had three black stones studded on the necklace that looked like a gray strip of silk. One banshee had two stones on her necklace and two more had one stone each on their necklace. The banshee standing directly in front of Harry had long black nails but otherwise all their appearance was almost the same.

As one scream ended and another began, Harry's sound shield began to vibrate and waver again. Harry cursed the fates, the spell had such a short duration and needed to be recast. Since the new scream gave no signs of ending, Harry gathered his strength and released the spell. Instantly, his ears were subjected to the ear-splitting shriek. Once again he felt something cold trickling down his ear as if resuming its journey and he felt himself weaken. He managed to cast the spell with great difficulty and that cold trickling had already made a freezing path down his throat by then.

Harry felt cold inside, the pain of the past few days resurfacing within him. His spell began to waver even before the first scream ended. Harry raised his wand with a trembling hand. Odd, how he felt almost detached as he realized his strength was fading away.

This time he waited until the spell wavered and broke under the onslaught of the banshee's scream. As the sound assaulted his ears, he tried to focus on the incantation. He felt his vocal cords pronouncing the words but he couldn't hear anything expect the scream. The cold trickling was making its way down to his heart. He tried to shout the spell's words again but he knew his voice grew weaker even if he couldn't hear it. Unimaginable grief clouded his consciousness. He could feel all the misery and anguish of his Azkaban days welling up inside him. He shook his head, trying to clear it all away and focus on casting the spell but it didn't work. The cold trickling had reached his heart, taking it in a freezing grip. The pain intensified as the banshee's scream became more high pitched. Then the scream ended and Harry found himself on his knees. His wand arm felt too heavy to lift and a hopeless feeling was suffocating him, killing his will to fight on. The spell had failed, leaving Harry vulnerable to banshee magic.

The banshees looked at each other before focusing their full attention on him again. The banshee on Harry's left began to scream.  This time it was different, even the teachers and students behind the barrier could feel it.

"Dumbledore, we have to do something!" Professor McGonagall tugged on Dumbledore's arm frantically.

"We can't, Minerva. There is no spell known to wizardkind that can stop the banshees. Even if we did interfere now, it could prove fatal to Harry."

"There _must_ be something we can do."

"There isn't. There isn't anything expect the unforgivables that can put a stop to it. And killing all those banshee would be difficult even if all the other teachers were willing to do it. And any interruption might result in Harry's death. The best that we can hope for now is that Harry comes out of this alive." In all her years of knowing him, Minerva McGonagall had never seen or heard Dumbledore in such despair.

As the first strange scream echoed on the school grounds, unheard by the other students, Harry's eyes focused on Dumbledore. The freezing cold in his heart increased as he remembered every memory linked to Dumbledore. Harry had come to depend on Dumbledore's all-knowing, comforting presence in his life over the years at Hogwarts. How Dumbledore or his help had always been there for him whenever he faced a challenge. How Dumbledore always knew everything without ever being told and he had a solution for every unsolvable problems.

Then Harry's memory turned to the night of the Third Task. He saw everything again, Dumbledore breaking his wand, Dumbledore watching silently as he was thrown out of Hogwarts. He remembered the days of his trail when Dumbledore sat there in the court, watching him with disappointment in his eyes, watching as his sentence was read out and he was led out by the Aurors.

A single tear escaped Harry's eyes as the memories ended, his unblinking gaze still on Dumbledore. As the scream ended, the banshee who had screamed stepped forward near Harry. To those watching from afar, it seemed as if she collected the single tear into the palm of her hand.

Once she reclaimed her place in the circle, there was silence for a minute before the banshee next to her began the strange scream. Harry raised his face sharply as if in pain and after a moment his gaze fixed on the tear-stained face of Hermione who was huddled close to Ron. As the high-pitched scream tore through the surroundings, Harry's thoughts were centered on Hermione. His know-it-all best friend who was always ready to find out the answer to every question, the girl who stayed by his side no matter what anyone else said. She helped him through so much, even when she was lying petrified in the Hospital wing, she always managed to be sensible and see the truth. Except when it came to seeing the truth about Harry. She hadn't been there for him then. She had not seen the truth then. She didn't listen to his problem or offer him any help then.

Another tear escaped from Harry's eyes. The second banshee came forward to claim it. When she retreated, it was the banshee to Harry's far right that took up what was becoming clear as a ritual of sorts. As the next scream echoed, Harry's mind went to Ron, his best friend from day one. Ron had always been ready to join Harry for every dangerous, life-threatening adventure that came along. Ron who was always ready to jump to his defense when Malfoy insulted him. Ron who had been jealous of him when he was chosen Champion. Ron who had hated him whole-heartedly since the moment everyone had accused him of mass-murder.

The tear that escaped his eyes was once again collected by the banshee. As she returned to her place, the banshees looked at each other.

"Why are they looking like that?" someone in the crowd voiced what everyone was thinking.

"They look almost like…almost like…they're surprised about something" Professor Vector said.

Harry's head was bowed again. The banshee with the black nails tilted her head to a side, looking at the banshee beside her. At this the other banshee stood taller and screamed. Ron felt the tears stinging his eyes as Harry's gaze returned to him once again and then shifted to Ginny who was standing beside him. Harry remembered the times he had spent with the Weasleys. They had been his family, sitting at their breakfast table in their little house, he had felt at home, like he belonged. Then they had been there at his trial. They were there as a family, only he was no longer even a small part of that family. The tear that was shed for his almost-family was collected by the banshee.

He was still down kneeling on his knees. Everyone else was still paralyzed, watching him surrounded by the banshees. It was then that the banshee in front of him began to scream.

"Severus, cast another sound barrier on this one. Quickly before the scream breaks through." Dumbledore's instructions were carried out hurriedly.

Dumbledore turned to ask Sirius to add his spell too but found Sirius in no condition to help them. He was being restrained by two teachers as he tried to break free of them and rush out to Harry. When he turned back to the banshee circles, he saw Harry looking straight at Sirius.

From the moment Harry had learnt that Sirius was innocent, Harry had seen him more as a father rather than a godfather. During the Tournament, he had seen Sirius risk his life to come and see him. When he had been accused of the crime, he had been beyond sure that Sirius would believe him. After all Sirius had been accused of something so similar himself. What he hadn't expected was to find Sirius blaming him, telling him he was exactly like Pettigrew, saying he couldn't believe that Harry was James and Lily's son. As the pain caused solely by Sirius seared through his frozen heart, his eyes stung until two tears overflowed. The banshee with the black nails came forward and collected them. Harry felt all the pain crowding in on him, eating away at his heart, making him feel as if he was shattering into a million pieces.

He couldn't take the pain anymore. He had tried to bottle it up. He had tried to bury it deep down inside. He had tried to pretend it wasn't there. But it was all flowing out now, he couldn't hold it in any longer. It was a moment before Harry realized that he was screaming. His scream was nothing like the other banshee screams. It wasn't shrill or high-pitched but it was every bit as painful. He screamed and screamed and it was as if all the sorrow and anguish within him had finally come out. The wind was blowing harshly, throwing strands of hair in his face, making most of it flow behind him. As his scream died away, he lowered his head to see his clothes had changed. As he got up, he saw that what was once his school robes was now a flowing robe with gauzy flyaway bits like the other banshees only his were black in colour. Harry looked around to see the circle breaking as the banshees neared him, a sadly welcoming smile on their features.

"NO! I won't let this happen. I failed him once, I won't fail him again. HARRY, Harry, look at me" Sirius shouted straining against the others. There was a mad glint in his eyes.

Catching a glimpse of movement, Harry raised his bowed head and saw Sirius fighting madly against the two teachers holding him back. Sirius managed to break free and ran out of the shield that protected the others, wand in hand. A banshee who had been watching the crowd saw him and screamed. As the impact of the scream hit him, he faltered, covering his ears with his hands but continued to stride forward. As Harry watched, Sirius ran forward and two banshees fixed their gaze on him. When he came within a threatening distance of the banshees, they screamed together. Everyone saw Sirius fall to his feet, attacked by the banshee magic. The screams continued and Harry watched emotionlessly.

But Sirius wasn't ready to give up. He removed his wand hand from his ear and through the pain focused on the banshees stunning the two who were screaming. The two banshees fell, their screams unfinished and immediately the others stepped forward. Three banshees came much closer to Sirius and screamed a long scream together. The magical attack hit Sirius full force and he swayed even as he was kneeling. He tried to shut the sound out with his hands but it didn't help. The screams continued and Sirius' strength began to diminish. The banshees only ended the scream when Sirius collapsed in the grass, tear-filled eyes closing shut. Dumbledore broke the barrier and all the teachers and some students rushed forward, wands at the ready. Seeing the wizards running towards them, the head of the banshees screeched and Harry was amazed when he found himself understanding the screech as a command to retreat. Two banshees glided forward and lifted their fallen companions. As one the banshees rose in the air and floated upwards. In that moment, the crowd noticed the two tigercat cubs that belonged to Harry running out from amongst them and stopping when they reached near Harry, watching him. They were standing there silently, unmoving as if they realized something important was happening.

Harry was still rooted to the spot, staring at Sirius who lay motionless on the ground. No one could read the expression on his face as he continued to stare at Sirius. Then, the leader of the banshees circled the air and screeched down at him. He looked up at her.

The others were standing near Sirius. He looked at Sirius again. Then he looked at the rest of them. Then he looked up at the banshees. For one insane moment even those who knew his fate with certainty hoped that he would choose them over the banshees. But their hopes were dashed as Harry rose gently in the air, hovering gracefully a few feet above the ground, giving Hogwarts a final look before gliding up, up until he reached the other banshees. Together, they began to glide away on wings of air. Everyone stood there and watched as many gray figures and one black figure became smaller and smaller until they disappeared into the gray morning clouds.

The two tigercats sat with their backs to the crowd, watching as their master flew away. They growled and jumped, pawing the air. They were trying to call their human back. But he was too far away. The cubs stood silently for a moment. Just when everyone thought they had given up on Harry, something happened. Suddenly, two black, leathery wings sprouted out of their backs. The cubs opened their wings experimentally flapping a few times. Then, without a moment's delay, they beat their wings hard. Tawreek rose from the ground and flew up as if he had been doing it forever but Siyaa was still struggling a little clumsily with his left wing. Tawreek circled Siyaa in the air and growled at him. It must have helped because then Siyaa was flying too and together the tigercat brothers flew after their human.

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A/N: Sorry about the mess-up of the last chapter being posted twice. I guess I'll never know whether I got around a hundred reviews for the last chapter because it was so good or because everyone wanted to point out the error that happened on ffnet when I tried to upload it.

I'm taking the majority's advice and cutting off most of the romance from this fic. If I keep any bits and pieces they will be posted under a different name altogether.

**That reminds me, since I'm deleting the romance, the title no longer applies does it? Think I'm gonna change the title. You're welcome to make suggestions, just remember I'm very stubborn and will do what I like in the end. **

Answer to some questions: No, I'm not Chinese but all my friends are either Chinese, Indians or Malays. White hair not inspired by Inuyasha, don't like his ears much. Harry has to sign the guardianship papers coz a reviewer pointed out the law to me that in guardianship issues, children above 12 are asked their views before court makes decision.


	14. The Banshai

A/N: To those who haven't read the new chapter 13, go read it now. I replaced the contents instead of removing it coz I couldn't bear to lose at least 26 reviews. The title of the chapter can't be changed though. Any ideas or tips?

**Chapter 14: The Banshai**

As the tigercats too disappeared in the grey clouds, Professor Dumbledore kneeled beside Sirius' unconscious form.

"How is he, Dumbledore?" McGonagall asked.

"He is still breathing. We need to get him to the Hospital Wing." Professor Dumbledore conjured a stretcher and Sirius was floated to the Hospital Wing.

After an initial check-up, Madam Pomfrey announced that he was stable but in a coma-like state.

"When will he wake up?" McGonagall looked questioningly at Madam Pomfrey.

"I am afraid it will not be that simple" Professor Dumbledore answered for her.

He heaved a weary sigh as the other two looked at him.

"He is not suffering from any physical injuries. His state is caused by banshee magic. It was lucky they stopped the attack when they did, a little longer and he might have died. Sirius has been so heart-broken these days since Harry's rejection. I am very relieved that he has survived it. It was more than I expected."

"But if his state is caused by banshee magic, then how will he wake up?" Professor McGonagall asked.

"That remains to be seen" Dumbledore rose from his seat.

"However, right now we have a frantic student body that needs to be reassured." Dumbledore left the Hospital Wing followed by Professor McGonagall while Madam Pomfrey returned to her duties.

The other teachers had herded the students back to the Great Hall and tried to calm them as much as they could. The prefects had been sent out to bring back all of the students who had left the Great Hall. The students as well as teachers calmed down somewhat when Dumbledore entered the Great Hall. Once everyone had been assembled and seated, Professor Dumbledore began to speak.

He explained that Professor Black was currently in a sleep-like state and would not be able to teach. Then he asked the teachers to explain what had happened in the Great Hall during breakfast when he wasn't there. It was Professor McGonagall who told him about Harry's outburst and the memory he had shown them all. Everyone else was quiet throughout the explanation. Dumbledore's expression grew even graver when he heard what had happened.

"Professor Dumbledore, wh-what's going to happen to Harry?" Hermione asked as soon as McGonagall had finished.

She and Ron sat side by side, still deeply shocked and miserable. Both of them felt guiltier than ever before for the pain that Harry had endured because of them. They were more composed than some of the other students which was surprising to the others but after having been through so much with Harry through the years, they had learnt to deal with such situations without overreacting.

"I am afraid, Miss Granger that Harry has been turned into a banshai" Professor Dumbledore's sober statement echoed in the Great Hall.

Hermione was looking horrified, as were some other students but the rest of them wore confused expressions. Despite seeing the evidence with her own eyes earlier, Hermione had been hoping that Professor Dumbledore would tell them it was a mistake or something else had happened and come up with some miraculous solution to rescue Harry. But hearing Dumbledore say that made Hermione lose all hope.

Dumbledore began to explain what had happened to Harry to the students who were listening quietly, knowing that leaving it a mystery would make the students come up with crazy speculations. Dumbledore tried to explain how the grief and pain from Harry's past made it possible for him to be turned into a banshai. He knew some of the students would feel guilty, but he explained how Harry must have felt all this time. It had been a mistake not to do this from the start. The other students' insensitivity and callousness had been the last straw for Harry. Harry should have had their compassion and understanding instead of more expectations on how he should behave and what he should do. Dumbledore had hoped coming back to Hogwarts would help heal Harry but instead all of them had pushed him over the brink.

Dumbledore wanted Harry to have a happy life in the end now that the war was over. But pure happiness could not be achieved while holding pain and grudges in your heart. You had to let go of the past to be able to step into the future. He knew Harry could have lived a relatively peaceful and calm life away from them all as he had wanted all along, but it would not be the best life. Deep down inside, he would always feel anger and resentment towards them all and that feeling would fill his life with bitterness. Dumbledore had allowed one of his students to carry that kind of resentment inside him once before. That boy's resentment had been towards the muggles whom he had grown up with. That boy had grown up to become a monster named Voldemort that wanted to inflict his pain on the rest of the world, who wanted every muggle to pay for the pain caused by a few.

Every time Dumbledore remembered the smart young man named Tom Riddle, he regretted not interfering with his life. If only Dumbledore had made him see that not all muggles were as horrible as those at the orphanage where he lived, that those muggles were just ignorant fools. If only he had made Tom work out his feelings and forgive the muggles who had wronged him, maybe today Tom Riddle would have been the Minister for Magic with a happy family and a son who was Head Boy at Hogwarts and a daughter who was an Auror. Instead he had devoted his life to destroying muggles and ruling the world and in the end it had been all for nothing. So many people had died, so many families torn apart because Dumbledore hadn't interfered and stayed away as Riddle had asked him to.

Dumbledore had vowed never again to allow any of his students to waste away with such empty emotions. He had done his best to get Harry back and he had planned to spend the next two years doing everything he could to help Harry get over everything so that Harry wouldn't be lost like Tom had been. He had planned to get Harry back with his friends or at least make new ones. He had planned for Harry to have a family like he always wanted with Sirius taking his father's place. He had planned for Harry to be happy again. And he would not give up on him. But what could he do now?

Dumbledore finished explaining about the banshai and he could see many of the students looking guilty. He ended his speech with a strong caution to the students that the incident must remain a Hogwarts secret and no one was to give anymore interviews to the reporters. If any student leaked the news about Harry to **anyone** outside of Hogwarts, the consequences would be dire. Classes for the day were cancelled and the students drifted out. Professor McGonagall explained Sirius' condition to the other teachers all of them set out to research and try and to find some clue to save him.

Many students were strolling on the grounds and one such group consisted mainly of Hufflepuffs who were gathered around Ernie McMillan trying to console him. Even his closest friends, Justin Flinch-Fletchly and Hannah Abbot hadn't ever seen him so desolate. Ernie could sometimes be very insensitive but he wasn't mean on purpose, just clueless and slightly pompous. It really had been his cousins and their parents who died in that vision Harry had showed them all. Last year, attending their funeral had been so painful to him. He had grown up with his cousins and they were very close, they had dreamt so many things together for when they all grew up. Their deaths had been a great blow to him. Seeing the way they had been tortured to death that morning was beyond anything Ernie had ever imagined. He knew Death-eaters were vile and cruel and they murdered people but watching them torture his relatives, hearing his cousins keening screams had shown him the reality of it all for the first time. He felt that he could never get over this.

His friends looked at each other helplessly not knowing what to say to make him feel better. They had been quite appalled by what they had seen and they hadn't even known the McMillans. Justin remembered the many times Ernie had spoken fondly of his cousin, Abby who was always so nice to Ernie. She would share her piece of cake with him but not with her big brother. She would steal his broomstick and borrow it to Ernie. She would do the sweetest things for him and irritate her brother to no end. Her loss had been hard enough on Ernie, but watching her scream in agony under the Cruciatus for an eternity before being killed must have been unimaginably painful. It had been unbearable even for Justin and he only knew about her from what Ernie had told him. Justin didn't know what to say to Ernie. He didn't know how Ernie felt right now, he couldn't imagine what he must be thinking. So he just sat there, by Ernie's side, offering his silent support and the other took their cue from him. The group sat under a tree by the lake in the gloomy morning.

Once the pain had numbed slightly, Ernie couldn't help but relive Harry's every single word over and over again. Ernie would never ever forget the things Harry had said that morning. It was as if every word was engraved on the inside of his skull, being replayed over and over again. He had said he had seen many such death-visions throughout his stay in Azkaban.

"How many deaths has Harry witnessed?" he asked his silent friends.

Justin and Hannah were relieved that Ernie wasn't crying or screaming but speaking in a calm if somewhat flat tone. That is, until his question sunk in. Everyone looked at each other uneasily.

"He said he had visions from his connection to You-Know-Who through his scar. Last year, so many people died at the hands of Death-Eaters. At one time, the Daily Prophet could only print lists of names since there were too many of them who had been killed. And that was just witches and wizards, not counting muggles. Do you think Harry saw each of them die?" Ernie finally took his eyes off the lake and looked at his friends.

None of them could answer. They hadn't even thought of the visions Harry must get until Ernie mentioned it. They had only found out about it this morning when Harry told them all.

"I was really unfair, wasn't I? I had never imagined that Harry had been through anything like this. I just thought he was locked up in a boring cell. He said Dementors are his worst fears. Did you know that? Did anyone know that they were his worst fears?" Ernie looked desperately at his friends who only shrugged and the silence stretched.

"My dad says the dementors are always patrolling in Azkaban. They don't sleep and they feed on all the prisoners' happy feelings and memories so they just keep gliding around the cells all the time. My dad says that's why most prisoners go crazy, because they have no good feelings or happy thoughts left. Most prisoners try to kill themselves. That's why the boat going to Azkaban has chains on it…….because the prisoners will try to drown themselves by jumping out of the boat. Because of the dementors." Hannah shuddered then fell silent again.

"And…..and those prisoners don't even have dementors as their worst fear, do they? I read a book on dementors, last year. I didn't really _finish_ it, it was too depressing. Dementors make people relive their worst memories." Lisa Turpin, the smart Ravenclaw informed them all.

"Yeah, you remember that time in the Third Year when the dementors came on the Hogwarts Express? When one of them entered our cabin, I began to feel really cold and I heard a hissing sound. And then, just for an instant I could see the basilisk, like when I saw it in Second Year, through Nearly-Headless Nick's ghost body. I forgot about it once the dementor left our compartment. That was caused by the dementors?" Justin asked Lisa, who nodded her head vigorously.

"God knows what Harry must have seen all the hundreds of times a dementor passed his cell" Ernie's bleak words brought back the gloom that had slightly lightened a moment ago.

"He must have lots of bad memories, worse than any of us. I mean, Justin, you only got petrified by the basilisk after looking at it for a few seconds, Harry was the one who fought and killed it, wasn't he? He was right. He **has** had so much more to worry about than exams and tests like us." Hannah's voice grew subdued.

"He watched his parents die. I read about it in 'A Modern History of Wizards'. He was a year old when You-Know-Who came after his family and killed them." Lisa said.

"And he got new ones like the one where my relatives died. He was right, I was unfair to say all those things. It's all my fault. And now he has been taken away by a group of banshees. Because of me. I did this to him, I pushed him over the edge." Ernie was sinking back into depression.

"Ernie, it's not your fault. Lots of things happened.." Justin's words trailed off.

"No, it's my fault. You heard what Professor Dumbledore said. It became too much for him. He survived all these years fighting so many times against You-Know-Who, killing him, staying in Azkaban. He survived all that but it was too much for him to come back to Hogwarts. I was his friend. I should have helped him get through this, not add to his problems."

"Ernie, don't say that! You can't blame yourself for what happened. We don't even really understand what happened with the banshees." Hannah tried to coax him out of the dismal mood.

That group of disheartened students was just one of many all around the school. There was a silence around Hogwarts. The teachers were sitting in their offices, reading upon Sirius' state or in the library searching information on Banshees. Dumbledore and McGonagall were in the Hospital Wing with Flitwick who had a specialist brought in from St. Mungo's through some connections. Madam Pomfrey hovered continuously over Sirius, feeling unnatural because there was nothing she knew that could help him or cure him. No one had seen Severus Snape since he had parted ways from Dumbledore who was floating Sirius to the Hospital Wing. Snape was probably in his office in the dungeons and even the Slytherins prayed they wouldn't run into him for the day. No one could predict what kind of mood Snape must be in currently.

Seeing the discouraged faces of the students picking at their lunch in the Great Hall, Dumbledore conferred with the teachers. Then he rose to announce that the First, Second and Third Years were to go to the Green houses for a joint Herbology lesson on some rare plants that Hogwarts had received the last week and all the upper years were to stay in the Great hall for an extra Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Not all students were present, some of the students were so traumatized by the events and they had to take Dreamless sleep potions and were asleep in their dorms. Surprisingly the people whom everyone expected to be the most traumatized were still there. While the students finished up their lunch and the younger ones left for the Green houses, Dumbledore once again made his way to the Hospital Wing where a tired and downcast Remus Lupin was standing watch over his only remaining best friend. After some wise words and a subtle order from Dumbledore, Remus found himself gently pushed out of the Hospital Wing and directed towards the Great Hall. Entering a Great Hall devoid of the House Tables, he noticed the glum faces and decided to pull himself together for their sake. Once the students were in place, the class was started by McGonagall.

"Today, you will all be learning how to perform the patronus charm. Now this is a very difficult charm and only very powerful witches and wizards can perform it flawlessly, but you will still practice it. It is highly unlikely that you will perform it well but even a poorly cast patronus can still give you a small amount of protection. The patronus charm is a defense against dementors…." Remus tuned out Professor McGonagall's lecture as he surveyed the students.

There were others who were also not paying attention, like Ron, Hermione, Ernie, Katie, friends of Harry who felt most guilty about what had happened. He knew they still had a thousand questions but they couldn't bring themselves to ask things about what had happened to Harry. Remus couldn't hold back the sigh. He felt guiltier than ever. It was bad enough that Harry had grown up with those hateful muggles and Remus couldn't do anything about it. It was bad enough that Sirius was imprisoned in Azkaban for thirteen years and Remus never helped him. And now he might lose both of them. Chances of Harry returning from the banshees and Sirius recovering from this state were _not good_. There, that was as positive as he could be and no amount of consoling words from friends and colleagues could help beyond that.

Remus was snatched away from his musings by the students' questions. They wanted to know why they were learning this as it was NEWT level Defense. Professor McGonagall handed the class over to him and Remus composed himself before launching into a sad explanation.

"All of you saw the memory, the vision that Harry…Harry showed this morning in the Great Hall." God, even saying his name was painful. Many of the students winced at the reminder.

"It was a horrible thing to see and I believe it was the worst thing that most of you have ever been through. There might be some of you who are unfortunate enough to have suffered something worse than having to watch the vision this morning, but for the rest of you, it is the worst possible thing you have witnessed, isn't it?" Remus continued after getting nods from almost all the students.

"As Professor McGonagall explained earlier, dementors suck all happy thoughts and memories and bring up the worse memories we have. Most wizards are lucky enough to have only a few bad memories and don't suffer that much but watching anyone tortured and killed before your eyes makes you very vulnerable to dementors. You might remember back in Harry's Third Year all the dementors came to the Quidditch pitch during the match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. All the other players remained in the air, but Harry fell off his broom. That was because Harry relived his parents' deaths every time a dementor came close enough to affect him. His parents hadn't been tortured before their deaths and Harry was barely a year old, so the memory should have been very dim but it affected him like that. After having seen what you did this morning, I think from now on some or all of you might have reactions to dementors similar to Harry's. That is why you must learn to cast the patronus charm." Remus ended the explanation and the real work began.

For the next two hours, the students practiced the charm. It was hard to think happy thought when they were feeling so miserable but with teachers constantly walking around, telling them to practice, the students had to make the effort. As predicted by Dumbledore, the class managed to lift the spirits of all the students who had never been close to Harry. As for Harry's friends, the teachers knew it would take a lot of time before they felt better and disregarded their lack of attention. The unusual day set with the same grey clouds of the morning. After dinner, Ron and Hermione went to visit Sirius and found Professor Lupin sitting by his bedside. Ron wondered if they looked as bad as Lupin did. No words were exchanged, none needed. The three of them only had to look at each other and know that their grief was the same. They sat by Sirius' unmoving form in silence until Dumbledore came an hour later.

"Professor Dumbledore, where is Harry now? Will we ever see him again?" Ron's voice was devoid of its usual energy.

"I'm afraid I don't know, Mr. Weasley." Dumbledore looked like he would keel over at any minute.

"But surely there is something that can be done, Professor. Even if he is a banshai now, there must be a way out, a solution. Harry has overcome so much. He even defeated You-Know-Who. This cannot be the end. This cannot be where he finally loses. There must be a way to get him back. You will get him back, won't you Professor? You will save Harry from the banshees. You will, won't you?" Hermione was hysterical enough that she was tugging at Dumbledore's sleeve until Ron pulled her back.

"Please, please Professor. Please tell us you know a way to fix this. You must get Harry back. There must be something we can do…." Ron trailed off, his hands gripping Hermione's shoulders tightly.

There was silence as they waited for Dumbledore's answer. Even Remus was waiting to hear what he would say. Dumbledore looked at the three broken people in front of him and closed his eyes. They had to get Harry back, no matter what it took. Dumbledore heaved a sigh and opened his eyes.

"I do not know a way to get Harry back right now. But all the teachers are working to find a way out. Harry is in no danger from the banshees, they wouldn't hurt their banshai. Other than that he also had his wand with him when he……left. I don't know whether he can use it or not but he has it. His tigercats also went after him and they will be able to protect him from certain threats. For now, Harry is safe."

"But where is he? What is he doing? What if he goes somewhere we can't find him? You know banshee colonies are almost untraceable." Remus' agitated voice echoed in the Hospital Wing.

"We will know soon enough how he is. We will be able to see him" knowing it was inevitable he beckoned the three to follow him.

On the way to the dungeons, Dumbledore explained the observation spell he had cast on Harry with the help of Snape and McGonagall. Fearing something like this would happen, Dumbledore had cast a complex far-sight spell on Harry without his knowledge, at least his conscious knowledge. Now they could use the mirror in Snape's office which had been enchanted for this purpose to see Harry. The four of them found everything ready when they reached Snape's office. McGonagall helped Dumbledore cast the activating spell on the mirror. Snape avoided looking at anyone directly, the lack of sneer making him very unusual. Then there was no time to look at Snape as the far-sight spell came into effect and the mirror stopped reflecting the office and showed another place instead.

It looked like a forest, only it wasn't dark there. The ground was covered with sand and big and small rocks jutted out in some places. There were a few trees in sight but none of them had any leaves, only bare branches spreading out desolately. And then there were the banshees, their gray, flowing robes blowing back as they walked, their white hair blowing gently away from their faces as if caught in a breeze. And there was Harry. He was sitting on a flat piece of rock roughly the size of his four poster bed. His robes were exactly the same as the banshees' only his were black. His white hair flowing away from his face just like theirs. His expression was serene.

There was a banshee behind him on the rock, kneeling supported by her knees. She had something clutched in her raised hand. It looked like a thick piece of wood, maybe a branch. The top half of it was covered in long, spiky thorn-like things. The lower half was just the wood clutched in the banshee's hand. She raised her hand to his head. In Snape's office, Professor McGonagall clutched her heart, Hermione clamped a hand to her mouth and Ron balled his fists. Was she going to hit him, bury those thorns in his head until blood oozed out? They needn't have worried. The banshee took a lock of Harry's pure white hair and ran the thorny wood through it. It was some sort of brush, she was brushing his hair. In the office, they heaved a sigh of relief.

Another banshee came and sat on a rock close to where Harry was sitting. She held what looked like a wooden bowl of fruit. She offered it to Harry who pushed it back gently. The banshee placed the bowl near Harry.

"What is she doing?" McGonagall asked pointing to another banshee who was much closer to the point from where they were watching.

The banshee was sitting on the ground in front of a rock that must work as a table and she was working very cautiously on something. They couldn't see her hands and what she was working on except when she occasionally lifted a hand and they caught the sight of a dark-coloured string or rope. Her nails were black. Dumbledore explained that it was a symbol that identified her as the leader of this colony.

Whatever work she had been doing, it was finished. As they watched, she stood up and walked over to Harry. As she approached, the banshee who had been brushing Harry's hair got up and moved away respectfully. The banshee with the black nails was carrying that string in her hands as she moved behind Harry. Resting one knee on the rock where Harry was seated, she brought the string over Harry's head and lowering it to his throat, pulled it to the back.

"Is she choking him?" Ron couldn't help but ask.

No one bothered to answer. It wasn't really necessary. On a closer look, the string looked more like a strip of blue-black silk with diamond-like studs on it.

"The necklace" Remus sucked in his breath.

It was indeed the banshai necklace, similar to the banshees' necklaces yet different. Harry's necklace was studded with six white stones, two large ones in the middle with two small ones on each side.

"Why does his necklace have so many stones? None of the other banshees have that many stones. Does it signify rank?" Hermione questioned.

"It can't. Even the leader only has two stones in her necklace. And there are others who have three." McGonagall replied almost absentmindedly.

"The stones are his tears." Dumbledore said somberly.

"What?"

"They are his tears. The ones he shed when the banshees turned him into a banshai this morning. Each banshee collected his tears after her scream. That is what banshee necklaces hold. A banshee's tears." Dumbledore's words rang through the office.

The banshee who had fastened the necklace around Harry's throat came to stand beside him. When he looked up, she opened her mouth and nudged her head forward slightly. Harry nodded and the banshee smiled. Apparently it was some form of communication. The banshee moved forward and kneeled once again by the 'table' rock. The slight smile on her face froze all of a sudden. Whatever she had been doing stopped when she looked up straight at Dumbledore and the others. It was as if she could see through the mirror and look straight at them. She looked angry. In a sudden movement she waved a hand in front of her, palm facing them. Before her wave was even complete the mirror in Snape's office exploded into pieces. Everyone was dazed for a few moments. After that the questions began.

Dumbledore made everyone calm down and explained what he thought. The far-sight spell had been cast by him, McGonagall and Snape one night. Harry had been asleep in his dorms and rightfully shouldn't have realized that the spell had been cast on him, but knowing Harry, he probably sensed it. The spell should have enabled them to view Harry at anytime, no matter where he went. They had been hoping to track him down through clues from the viewing. What they hadn't anticipated was the banshees detecting this spell. Dumbledore knew almost all past attempts to observe banshees had failed but he had thought that the magic cast before Harry was turned into a banshai might have gone undetected. Now that the spell was broken, Dumbledore couldn't think of any other way to get to Harry. But they would all continue to search for a solution.

The days turned into weeks and no one was able to come up with anything to help either Harry or Sirius. Everyone at Hogwarts had dedicated themselves to trying to find a way out for those two. Another experienced specialist had been called to Hogwarts from his work in Bulgaria. He explained Sirius' situation to them. It was almost hopeless.

Banshees' screams had magical properties. They caused pain to any living creature that heard them. Banshee screams were lethal to heart broken people. So mainly there were two groups of people; those who felt momentary pain upon hearing a banshee scream and those who died because of it. However, there were some cases of this coma-like state. The specialist had seen it before. There was that young lady in Japan. An only child, she had been distraught when her father died. Her mother had been heartbroken. Two banshees came, hearing the beating of her broken heart. The daughter was there when the banshees screamed and the grief killed her mother. The mother died but the daughter didn't. Instead she went into the coma state. The daughter too died several months later.

However coma cases weren't completely hopeless. There were the two best friends who had both lost someone recently. The guy who loved his wife very much was getting divorced and the girl had finally separated from her boyfriend. When a banshee attacked them, the man died on the spot but the girl went into the coma state. When her estranged boyfriend came to see her everyday, spoke to her, told her he loved her, she woke out of the coma state without any side effects.

The specialists' words gave them a little hope. Sirius wasn't completely lost. He could still come back to them but only if Harry was there for Sirius, which meant they had to get Harry back before they could do more for Sirius.

In the meantime, somehow the news about Harry being a banshai had leaked out. At first the reporters had written the wildest stories and the parents had owled the school with absurd questions and demands. _Harry Potter gone Dark!__ This clearly proved that Potter was evil from the very beginning. He should never again be allowed to attend Hogwarts or even anywhere in the magical community. Potter should be captured and imprisoned. All banshees should be hunted and put to death._ But as all the students stood by Harry and defended him against every accusation and insinuation, the parents regained their senses and the reporters realized that bad-mouthing Harry Potter wouldn't pay this time.

The search for Harry Potter spread across the magical community. Everyone was trying to find out his whereabouts. Different theories and methods were put into practice but none of them worked.

Nothing worked until one day the banshai showed up at Hogwarts, gliding calmly over the trees of the Forbidden Forest to land gently down in the school grounds. It was another morning, not cloudy like the day he left over a month ago but a sunny morning. Harry Potter, dressed in his flowing black banshai robes strode calmly towards the castle, ignoring the gasps and shouts from the Care of Magical Creatures class that had watched him glide into Hogwarts.

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A/N: I'm gonna change this fic's title. It's gonna be 'Curse of the Banshees' unless I think up / come across a better title. I will start writing another fic which will contains whatever bits and pieces of romance that I was gonna put in this fic and name that one 'The Reluctant Playboy'. That way those who don't wanna read it can just stick to this fic and ignore the romance and those who wanna read it can do so and those who search for my fic by this name will still find it. Last time I checked, there were 14 reviewers who said don't cut the romance and 3 who said it's better off without romance. Hope this satisfies both categories.


	15. Sirius

A/N: The whole banshee-veela animosity and banshee lifestyles are my own creation and don't belong to the HP world.  
  
**Chapter 15: Sirius**  
  
Harry walked into the castle heading for the Headmaster's office. Ignoring the looks of shock and gasps from the few students who were still in the corridors, Harry glided to the stone gargoyle. Before he had fully stopped, the gargoyle sprang aside and a shocked Albus Dumbledore came down to stand before him.  
  
"Harry...." Harry sidestepped him and climbed the revolving staircase to his office.  
  
Dumbledore followed him back into his office. Harry sat down on one of the chairs facing the Headmaster's desk and waited for Dumbledore to take his place. Regaining his usual serenity, Dumbledore took his seat and waited expectantly. He was curious about so many things but he knew better than to question Harry.  
  
Harry was still dressed in his black Banshai outfit and the tear-shaped stones on his Banshai necklace shone like diamonds in the morning sun. There was a serene look about him that seemed almost unnatural. Dumbledore did not realize that his eyes betrayed his despairing emotions as he gazed at the necklace around Harry's neck.  
  
The silence in the office stretched and nothing moved except Fawkes who after giving Harry a customary once over, went back to cleaning his feathers. Finally Harry sat up slightly from his previously leaned back position in the chair. He looked at Dumbledore with his head titled slightly then he opened his mouth as if to say something. However no sound came out. Harry closed his mouth and straightened before opening his mouth to speak, yet again it was as if a thought had just come to him and he didn't speak.  
  
Harry leaned back in his chair, leaning his elbows on the armrests and steepled his fingers, staring thoughtfully at his hands. Dumbledore watched it all in silence. There had never been a banshee who spoke. Historical books recorded events where desperate relatives or friends approached, sometimes even captured their loved one who had turned into a banshee but none of the banshees ever spoke. The only time a banshee's voice was heard was in that terrible magical scream that released all pent-up anguish. However, there was nothing known about a Banshai's ability to speak or the lack of it.  
  
Harry sat in silence, still looking thoughtful. He looked up at Dumbledore and tried to speak again and again no sound came out of his mouth. Dumbledore was going through every single speech spell and potion in his memory. It was apparent that Harry wouldn't be able to speak without some magical help.  
  
"Aah.....I...I..." he was surprised to hear Harry's voice.  
  
Harry was struggling as if he hadn't spoken in years and speech was a near- forgotten memory.  
  
"I...have...returned....Had to back....The ban-banshees need help..." Harry's voice grew steadier.  
  
"Is something wrong?" Dumbledore's voice sounded genuinely concerned.  
  
Harry only raised an annoyed brow at his tone then began the difficult process of telling him the reason for his return. Even with his halting speech, Dumbledore was almost spellbound with the story he had to tell.  
  
Harry had indeed become the banshai of that particular banshee colony. He had been content to stay with them living at their forest sanctuary. However, during his stay he had learnt all about the special place a banshai held within a colony and the reason behind this special status. He had been told the tale a few days after he had been 'turned'.  
  
The banshees lived a harsh life due to the curse the veelas had put on them. Not only could their kind not have a mate, children and a family, the banshees were completely cut off from the rest of the world. The banshees could not speak even if they wanted to. The only creatures who understood them were other banshees. The curse prevented them from keeping any contact with the people they had known before becoming a banshee. They were also incapable of doing magic even though most of them had been witches before being 'turned'.  
  
The veelas also suffered form the curse put on them by the legendary leader banshee, Ghera centuries ago but that curse wasn't half as bad. The veelas could still mingle freely with other witches and wizards and still had families.  
  
However, there was a way to lift the curse on the banshees. The story had been passed down generations of banshees and was still recited amongst them. It was almost like a prophecy. Ghera had died in the great battle between the banshees and the veelas all those centuries ago. But as she was breathing her last breath on that battlefield, she spoke to her fellow banshees. She told them that the curse was breakable. They would once again regain their voices and be able to live the life they had before. The curse would be broken by a banshai who passed the ultimate test.  
  
That was all she had been able to say before her death. For centuries, the banshees remembered her words and searched the world for the one banshai that could set them free from the curse. There had been a number of banshais but even the banshai never knew what this 'test' was and how to pass it. And the veelas never failed to track down the banshai and convert him into a veela. Now once again the banshees' hopes had risen to be free from the curse.  
  
Harry felt he was responsible to help them. He needed to learn everything about the curse and learn how to break it. That was the reason he was back at Hogwarts. The banshees had wanted him to stay far away in the sanctuary with them, but he knew that he needed some help if he was ever going to be able to do anything. The banshees had been highly agitated when he said he wanted to return to Hogwarts. They were afraid of losing him to the veelas. He had a hard time convincing them to let him go but he promised he would return every evening to the sanctuary. Finally they had agreed albeit reluctantly.  
  
"I am here to try to find a way to break this curse." Harry paused though he could speak clearly now.  
  
"Will you help me?" he asked and it sounded as if the plea for help had been wrenched painfully from his throat.  
  
Dumbledore was pained that this boy could be so loathe to ask him for help. He knew what it cost Harry, how hard it had been to let go of his pride. Dumbledore knew that the pain of betrayal hadn't been healed. He vowed to help Harry through this, no matter what it took, no matter how long.  
  
"Yes, of course Harry. I am sure I speak on behalf of all the teachers when I say that you will get all the help you need. There are many historical books in the library that mention the banshee-veela war and the teachers might be able to make some useful suggestions. I believe Professor Sinistra's second cousin is a researcher of magical history with some rare manuscripts. Hogwarts has many outer contacts that might be able to find something. I am sure we will come up with something." Dumbledore assured him.  
  
He picked up a quill and scribbled a few words on a piece of parchment.  
  
"Why don't you start with looking up these books in the library? I will see the other teachers in case they remember anything of use" he handed the parchment to Harry.  
  
Harry accepted and stood up to leave. As he was about to turn the doorknob, Dumbledore called after him.  
  
"You might want to stop by the Hospital Wing before you go to the library. Sirius is still in a coma and the experts from St. Mungo's have given up on him. If you wish to say goodbye to him, it would be best to do it now."  
  
Dumbledore's voice remained calm and unemotional as he said this. He might have felt bad about breaking the news in such a manner but he hoped it would bring out a good reaction from Harry. From what he saw of Harry's behavior these days, he knew pleading with him to see Sirius would almost certainly cause him to close up and run the other way.  
  
Harry turned around to look at the Headmaster in shock. After a moment he turned around and left the office. Harry walked down the stairs and turned left. He was walking in that gliding manner but he wasn't yet sure of his destination. That corridor led both towards the library and the hospital wing.  
  
Sirius was in a coma, his brain kept repeating. Why was he in a coma? The answer came to him soon enough. That day when he had been 'turned'. Sirius had tried to get to him. Two of the banshees had screamed at him. His last vision of Sirius had been his unconscious form lying prone on the grass. Being a banshai, he now fully understood the different effects of banshee magic on witches and wizards. Sirius had been affected. He was in a coma caused by banshee magic. He would die if his grief didn't end. He would die if no one could pull him out of the pain he was suffering.  
  
But Remus Lupin was here, wasn't he? As far as he knew Remus was the only close person to Sirius. Only other close person, he admitted to himself bitterly. Why couldn't Remus pull him out of the coma? Why did he have to be the one to do this? He didn't want to save Sirius. Sirius had abandoned him, he wanted to abandon Sirius in return. Then why was he feeling so miserable? No, wait. He always felt miserable. Why was he feeling more miserable than usual?  
  
He wasn't going to visit Sirius. He wouldn't save him. Saving him would mean forgiving him. He was not ready to forgive Sirius, he didn't know if he would ever be ready. This Was Not Fair! Why was life so mean to him? He didn't want to go see Sirius. He didn't want to hold his hand and call his name. He didn't want to pull him out of this coma. Yet he couldn't bring himself to imagine his death. He didn't want Sirius to die because of him. And he knew it was because of him. Sirius had been vulnerable to banshee magic because of his guilt towards Harry. Well it wasn't Harry's fault so he wasn't going to feel guilty about it. He would just not visit Sirius. That way, he wouldn't have to save him.  
  
But he would have to go to his funeral. Damn conscience! He hated himself for being so weak. He was still undecided and the fork that separated the way to the library and hospital wing was fast approaching. But in that moment the choice was taken out of his hands.  
  
A very haggard-looking Remus Lupin shuffled towards him from the corridor that led to the hospital wing. He didn't see Harry since his head was bent. He looked weary to the bone, gray hairs more visible than ever. His entire stance was that of a defeated and despairing man. That stance changed the moment he raised his head and laid eyes on Harry. At first, he looked shell shocked. Then, he began to look relieved to see Harry was alright. And then it was as if a steamroller of an idea had hit him.  
  
"HARRY...Harry, you're back. I thought I'd never see you again. Thank God you are alright" he strode towards him and clasped his shoulders.  
  
"Harry...Sirius. Harry, Sirius is dying. _He is dying_. They have all given up on him. He won't live. He's been lying there in the hospital wing for a month now. They called in specialists from all over the world. They tried every charm and potion they could think of. But nothing worked. _Nothing_. They say there is no cure. His grief is eating him from the inside and there's nothing we can do. Harry, they are preparing for his death. **They are preparing for his death**. They think I don't know but I know. I know...I know..." his voice had lowered to a whisper, head nodding in time with the last exclamations.

There were tears in the werewolf's eyes and his voice had gained a hysterical edge. His superhuman strength was hurting Harry because he was unaware that he had tightened his grip on Harry's shoulders.  
  
"Harry, you can help him. You can, can't you? I know you can. He has been feeling guilty over you. If you tell him to not to die, he will listen to you. If you tell him to wake up, he'll wake up. Harry, you have to save him. Please Harry, please. Please save Sirius. Please don't let him die. I wouldn't be able to live if he dies."

He was gazing at something above Harry's head in a way that was frightfully similar to a madman's look.

"It was so hard when mom and dad died. It was so hard when James and Lily died. It was so hard when I thought Peter had died and Sirius was responsible. Now that Sirius is back, I won't be able to bear it if he died. I can't take this anymore. Everyone has died." Remus was lost in some horrific world of his own for a moment.  
  
His tears were flowing freely although he himself wasn't aware of it. The usually calm and quiet Professor was on the verge of a breakdown.  
  
"Save him, Harry. Please save him. Only you can. Please, Harry. I'll...I'll do anything. Just don't let him die. I won't be able to bear it. You'll save him, won't you? You'll tell him to wake up? He'll listen to you. Please tell him to wake up. Harry, please help him. Harry...." Remus was tugging on Harry's arm.  
  
Harry could no longer ignore him. He sighed and nodded and walked towards the hospital wing with Remus. Remus still held a firm grip on Harry's arm though he wasn't dragging Harry. It was as if he was afraid Harry was a figment of his imagination and would vanish in a puff of smoke if he let go.


	16. Return to Hogwarts

**Chapter 16: You are just my Godfather**

The Hospital Wing was eerie, an atmosphere of despair. Madam Pomfrey was putting some vials back on a bedside table. A balding wizard in dark blue uniform robes was speaking quietly to a disheveled wizard who was pushing his thick glasses up his long nose. And on the bed lay the unconscious form of Sirius Black, deathly pale and unmoving.

Remus led Harry in, hands still gripping Harry's arm unconsciously.

"You'll save him. He'll listen to you. He will do what you tell him. I know he will. I know..." Remus continued to speak to no one in particular. Madam Pomfrey and the other two turned around to stare at Harry in amazement, his banshai black robes and glittering necklace as dramatic as his windswept white hair.

As the other three continued to gape, Remus dragged Harry over to where Sirius was lying. Harry looked upon his unconscious godfather with a sense of utter detachment.

"Sirius, wake up! Look who's here. Harry's back. See, he came back. That's what you wanted, isn't it? That's what you were waiting for. See, now he's here, you can wake up. Sirius, it's time to wake up! **Sirius**" Remus' voice still had a hysterical edge as he knelt by the bedside and shook Sirius in order to wake him.

"Sirius, why aren't you waking up? You wanted Harry to come back. See now he's back. Don't you want to wake up, talk to him? Come on, wake up. _Wake up_" he shook Sirius harder.

Madam Pomfrey rushed over, and gently pried Remus away from the bedside.

"He's going to wake up soon, Remus. He's just a bit tired. Now that Harry's here, he is going to wake up real soon. We just need to give him some time. Now, I thought I told you to go rest..." Madam Pomfrey was trying to gently lead him away but Remus wrenched out of her grasp.

"Harry, you have to talk to Sirius. You have to tell him that you are back. You have to tell him to wake up. He'll listen to you. Just talk to him please. Just talk to him before he...before he..." Remus voice broke as he looked desolately at his dying best friend.

The once unflappable Professor was very close to a breakdown. Harry would have felt surprised and maybe worried if he hadn't become so completely aloof.

"Now Remus, don't be upset. Harry will talk to Sirius. See, he's right here. He's not going anywhere. We'll all talk to him when he wakes up. But you're tired. How will you talk to him if you are so tired? You need your strength. Here, sit down. I'll give you a Strengthening Potion, alright? Drink this, it will restore your energy. Drink it, Remus! You can see Sirius after you drink your potion." Madam Pomfrey had coaxed him into sitting on a bed and handed him a vial of purple potion.

Remus tried to protest and get up, but finally had to give in to Madam Pomfrey's gentle but firm coaxing. He drank the potion half-heartedly and before he knew it, he was fast asleep. Madam Pomfrey adjusted him into a more comfortable position on the cot without showing the slightest remorse for tricking Remus into drinking a Dreamless Sleep potion.

Turning back to Harry, Madam Pomfrey approached him a little cautiously. Harry couldn't remember ever seeing the fierce matron so close to tears.

"I am very relieved to see you are alright, Harry." she tried to smile but she looked defeated and exhausted. There was no formal 'Mr. Potter' or stern look from her this time.

The other two wizards had come to stand on the other side of Sirius' bed, watching silently.

"Sirius has been unconscious ever since the day you....went away. We tried rousing him using the normal spells and potions but nothing worked. Realizing his condition was probably caused by banshee magic, we had experts from St. Mungo's examine him. Ever since then, we have tried every possible cure we could think of, but alas he has been sinking deeper into a coma. And even Sir McDowell came all the way from Ireland to examine him if he could maybe come up with a solution. Sir McDowell is a mediwizard and has been researching human-magical creatures, mainly banshees and vampires.

We have not achieved any progress, his condition is deteriorating rapidly. I am afraid that there is nothing more that we can do for him." Madam Pomfrey looked sadly at Sirius.

Sir McDowell pushed his thick glasses up his nose again and cleared his throat before addressing Harry.

"Right now, it is difficult to say whether he will get through this or not. The grief in him that made him vulnerable to banshee magic is related to you. I have seen some cases where the victims have pulled through. Right now, I would say that you are his only hope. And his chances of survival are diminishing by the minute." he explained in a grave voice.

Having nothing else to say, the other two wizards thought it best to leave Harry alone with his godfather. They left the hospital wing still deep in discussion. Madam Pomfrey checked on Sirius and adjusted his pillow.

"He is very close to death and the only one who might be able to pull him away from death's door is you. You might not forgive him for betraying you and you might resent him for once again putting you in this position but it will not change the situation. The only way he might pull through this is if you forgive him and genuinely ask him to come back. Speak to him, ask him to wake up, tell him you want him to live, tell him all the things he has to live for.........Tell him you forgive him and you care for him. Tell him, and maybe he'll survive. If you can find it in your heart to forgive your godfather, then tell him. But that is your decision. Beyond that, I have nothing to say." Madam Pomfrey told Harry before returning to her office and closing the door.

Harry sighed and sat down. He observed the pale face and thin form of his godfather. Forgive Sirius? Forgive him for turning his back on his godson when he was his last hope? Forgive him for abandoning Harry when he was all alone and facing the most difficult time of his life? Forgive him for believing that Harry was a murderer and supporter of his own parents' killer? Harry sighed again. Somehow, this time these thoughts didn't evoke the pain and bitterness like before. He could feel a little irritated and depressed and maybe a little hurt, but that gut-wrenching anger and despair he felt before just didn't come as he sat down on the chair beside his dying godfather.

Harry was lost in thought and didn't realize Professor McGonagall's presence until she was right behind him. He stood up, more in a defensive reflex rather than in respect of the teacher. She was carrying an armful of heavy and extremely dusty tomes. She deposited those on the empty bed behind Harry before straightening up and facing him. She looked as if she was barely holding back tears.

"Professor Dumbledore sent these books for you. They are the ones with the most information on banshees found in the library. There are a few more which you might want to look through once you're finished with this lot." her voice was hoarse due to the held back tears. Harry didn't know if the tears were for him or Sirius.

"I hope you find what you're looking for" she offered before giving his shoulder a squeeze and turning away emotionally.

The sound of her blowing her nose on her handkerchief as she left the Hospital Wing reminded Harry of the time he and Ron had been caught out of class and pretended they were off to see Hermione who was lying petrified in the Hospital Wing in their Second Year. For a moment he almost smiled at the memory, the Chamber of Secrets was not that scary now that it was in the past. But the unformed smile disappeared when he was reminded of his friends.

Harry focused his gaze on the still form on the bed in front of him. He didn't know why he felt so numb when he looked at Sirius. The others still caused that familiar tightening in his chest but he felt nothing when he looked at his near-death godfather. Was it banshee magic? Knowing that Sirius could die because of the grief in his heart? Was it because this proved how truly sorry his godfather was for not being there for him? Was it caused by his being a banshai and thus immune to pain related to banshee magic victims? Why didn't he feel anything? Anger, pain, remorse, sadness, disappointment, anything?

Not finding the answer to his questions, Harry decided to do what he came to do originally. Picking up one of the large books from the heap on the other bed, he flicked it open to the contents and scanned the list of 'dark' creatures until he came to banshees. Opening the book to the appropriate page, he began to read the loopy, cursive writing on the yellowed pages. It smelled musty, a mixture of old age and wisdom. A gentle breeze blowing through the open window brought the rustle of autumn leaves and the promise of rain. Since becoming a banshai, Harry had found a whole new world in the sense of hearing.

Remembering what Madam Pomfrey had said about trying to talk to Sirius, Harry sighed. He could think of nothing friendly to say to the man's unconscious form. Maybe he should read the book aloud instead. It would probably help with his speech too. He was still wondering why he could speak. Kaela had said banshees couldn't speak. Well she hadn't exactly 'said' it. The book lay forgotten in his lap as his surroundings faded and he recalled the past few weeks he had spent with the banshees. Never before had he felt so much like he belonged.

It seemed so long ago now, the day he had been turned. He had suffered unimaginable pain every time a banshee screamed as he kneeled in their midst. Each banshee scream had torn painful memories from his mind, displaying them before him one after another and the agony in his heart increased with each. Each time the memory was focused on one person and it would begin with how he had met that person, the good times they had and then all the things that person had said and done that hurt him. He had seen Ron, all the times they had been friends then the pain of his rejection at the beginning of the Triwizard Tournament and later during Harry's trial. He had remembered Hermione and Dumbledore and the Weasleys with each banshee scream. The last scream had pulled out all memories concerning Sirius and then there was the rage and pain caused by him when Harry had thought he murdered his parents, when Sirius had turned away from him believing he was the murderer everyone called him.

And that final memory of Sirius's rejection caused such a searing pain within him that he felt as if his pain-twisted heart was bursting and bleeding. He had to release this pain somehow before it broke his body into little pieces. He did the only thing he could, he screamed. And in that scream he heard all his grief and sorrow. And as he screamed and screamed the pain began to lessen, seeping away with his scream. And as he screamed he felt a strange magic replacing the pain in his heart. As his scream ended that alien magic stirred in his heart, sinking within his being. With that magic came knowledge, the natural instincts of a banshai. He could hear voices in the wind. It was as if the wind was speaking to him, telling him about the trees at the edge the Forbidden Forest, the animals on the ground, the birds flying in the sky, the beasts that were prowling deeper in the Forest and those that were resting and where each being was.

As he was absorbing what the wind was saying, he heard a wail from one of the banshees around him.

_The Banshai awakens_ was what the banshee had said yet it wasn't said in words. It had been a sound much like a whimper yet his mind translated it into words.

And then there was an echo of _'the banshai awakens'_ around him and to his surprise he realized that his mind was somehow linked to the other banshees and he could hear those words as if the banshees had said it out loud though they hadn't made even a murmur this time. The banshees moved closer to him, as if wanting to get to know him and though none of them smiled, Harry felt as if they were welcoming him. And then he heard a different voice.

"Harry, Harry...no..." it was Sirius who had broken through Dumbledore's protection shield and was running towards him.

"Protect the banshai" was the outraged cry of the first banshee and in a flash the other banshees built a tight circle around him all facing outwards and ready to face any attack.

One of the banshees blocked Sirius' path and screamed directly at him. This time when he heard the scream, he did not feel any pain. In fact he felt nothing except a tingling of his new instincts made him feel the banshee magic being performed through the scream.

His new senses overwhelmed him. There was so much to take in that he was barely aware of what was happening to Sirius. He felt disoriented, as if suddenly being woken from sleep and not knowing where he was or what he had been doing. He heard another banshee joining the first and both of them screaming with Sirius now on his knees before them but he couldn't bring himself to care. He felt oddly detached and that scared him. He was still reeling from the whole shock to his system, when the banshee that he would come to know as Kaela approached him.

_We are not welcome here among these humans. Come, Banshai. Come with us to your new home._ the soft female voice he heard in his head appeared to belong to her.

And with that she rose in the air in front of him followed one by one by the other banshees. All of them rose gracefully in the air, going higher and higher. Harry would have gaped, only somehow this magical power that the banshees had didn't surprise him. It was as if he had known all along that they could fly just like he knew without a doubt that he too had this ability, only this knowledge had been hidden before.

As the last two banshees glided up in the air, Harry saw Sirius lying unconscious on the ground. His first instinct was to go see if he was alright, but he remembered that Sirius had let him down. Odd, how he didn't feel the intolerable disappointment of before at that thought.

_Come, Banshai. Come to your family. Come with us to The Sanctuary_ Kaela's voice echoed in his head and he looked up to see all the banshees gliding there as if waiting for him. He looked back at Sirius, and suddenly he found that he didn't care. He didn't care what happened. He didn't care what the others were saying or thinking or feeling. He didn't care about staying with them. He felt deeply tempted to follow the banshees. And so he gave in to temptation.

He looked up at the sky and thought about rising in the air and he wasn't as surprised as he should have been when his body began to glide up in the air without any broomstick or spell. He rose in the air and the higher he went the more of his worries and doubts faded. He began to feel the joy of flight again, reminding him of his passion for flying.

On and on he flew with the banshees, beyond the Forbidden Forest, past many small towns and villages, over vast lands and forests until he reached The Sanctuary. It was a place with a forlorn beauty, set at the edge of an untamed jungle which separated it from the rest of the world. A white beach stretched as far as the eye could see. The ocean was a clear blue-green with huge waves crashing at the rocks and the steep cliff further up north. This was Sanctuary, home of the Almaaws. That was the name of this colony.

As the days flew by, Harry grew to love Sanctuary. He would take long walks on the beach or sit in the shade of the Melan trees with his fellow Almaaws. The oddly fascinating magical trees looked like willows but with the blackest bark he had seen on any tree. Sometimes he would glide over the ocean in the sunset or fly among the clouds at night. The tigercats were almost always by his side. He had been surprised to see them land at the Sanctuary not long after himself. The banshees had considered them a threat at first and crept closer with the intention to capture them. Harry tried to speak, tell them the cats were harmless but he seemed to have lost his voice in that moment. Siyaa and Tawreek weren't helping the matter by baring their sharp fangs in guttural growls. Finally Harry had shouted 'NO' when the banshee directly behind them had tried to capture Siyaa. Only he hadn't _shouted_ it, it was more of a mental shout. But apparently the banshees had heard him for they turned to him. He had explained about Siyaa and Tawreek in that loud mental voice again and to his surprise, the banshees had heard and understood him.

Since that day, the tigercats stayed with him and the banshees grew to like them, indulging them with their favourite foods and playing 'chase' with them in the air. Harry was glad they had grown their wings so fast, he hadn't expected it but it was a pleasant surprise especially since they wouldn't have been able to follow him so easily otherwise.

Siyaa and Tawreek had also caused a sensation when they visited the other two banshee colonies for the Melan celebration. The Almaaws had acted all proud and pompous when they introduced him to the other colonies. The banshees from the other colonies were in awe of him just as much as the Almaaws had been during his first days at the Sanctuary. He was glad that it didn't last long at the Sanctuary but the banshees at the festival had treated him with reverence the whole time. Each of them had come up to him at some point and trailed her fingers gently from his shoulder to his elbow, bowing her head slightly in what was the customary salute to a banshai. Even the few who had taken a clear dislike to him showed that initial sign of respect before retreating and shooting resentful looks at him when they thought no one was watching. And the festival itself...it had been amazing....

Harry was startled back to the present when a breeze blew in through the open Hospital Wing doors bringing with it the news of two humans arguing in hushed voices right outside the doors. He had barely turned to face the doors when Hermione Granger walked in resolutely followed by a clearly reluctant Ron Weasley.

Hermione walked over to the bed that contained the books about banshees and kicking off her shoes, climbed on the bed and sat cross-legged in front of the books.

"Hello Harry." She only looked briefly at him before dragging one of the books onto her lap and opening it.

Ron met Harry's eyes and tried to smile but it came out as a grimace before he shrugged and sat down on a chair on the other side of the bed from Harry.

"Go 'way" Harry growled at them.

He still wasn't used to talking again even if only a month had passed since he became a banshai.

"No, Harry. We're not going to go away. We are here to help you find a cure for the banshees like we always helped you in the past. We understand that you haven't forgiven us and we accept that. We are just here to help and you need all the help you can get. You can't solve this alone. So why don't you go back to reading that book of yours" she suggested in an unruffled voice.

Harry growled but Hermione had already turned her attention to the book in front of her and ignored him. Ron was holding a book too and looking warily at him. For a moment Harry wanted to give them a taste of the pain of a banshee scream but suddenly he felt too tired to fight with them. What did it matter? They weren't his friends anymore. All the pain and hurt he had felt in Azkaban had disappeared since he became a banshai. The bitter anger that welled up inside him at a moment's notice every time he saw or heard of his friends was no longer there. Instead there was a serene peace and the beckoning memory of the banshees and Sanctuary. That feeling washed over him now, taking away whatever ill feelings he had felt since stepping back into Hogwarts.

Harry turned back to the book he was holding, the others' presence forgotten for the time being. Pretty soon, he was deeply absorbed in the book he was reading. It told the history of the banshees, their home and very few but accurate customs of the banshees.

Madam Pomfrey came some time later to bring them food on a tray. Hermione and Ron accepted theirs but Harry refused. It continued for the rest of the day, three people sitting in the Hospital Wing beside two unconscious man, reading thick books in silence as the afternoon sun cast rays of light through the long, open windows. As the sun began to set, a gust of wind blew in through the windows and ruffled Harry's hair. He looked up as if in response to someone calling his name and turned his face towards the wind. The wind settled down, Harry closed the book he was reading and standing, dropped it on the pile at Hermione's feet. Both Hermione and Ron were speechless getting their first good look at his banshai robes. The cloth looked rough with tattered tail-like edges hanging all over the robe that upon closer inspection weren't really shreds, only part of the ensemble. As he turned towards the window, the stones of the banshai necklace glittered in the afternoon light.

Harry walked slowly towards the window, his feet rising above the floor as he neared the window and finally glided out. The other two got up and rushed to the window to see him flying faster and faster, over the Forbidden Forest, farther and farther until he disappeared from sight. They were still standing there when Ernie McMillan ran into the Hospital Wing.

"Where is he? Where'd he go?" he asked breathlessly.

"Mr. McMillan, stop right this instant. I thought I told you to stop. This is an outrage. Professor McGonagall already said you weren't to see...."

Whatever else Madam Pomfrey was going to say was forgotten as she looked around to see that Harry was gone.

"Where is he?" Ernie asked again.

"He left. Just like that...flew out the window." Ron replied in a dazed voice.

"And you didn't stop him?" he asked in an accusing tone.

"Mr. McMillan, I doubt that he would listen to anyone right now. The headmaster has said that he may come and go as he pleases. He is only here because he needs information about the banshees. He was very reluctant to be here and I'm sure he would leave and never come back at the least provocation. He is the only one who can save Professor Black's life and right now I don't think he will appreciate all the people who feel guilty coming up to apologize to him...." Madam Pomfrey was leading Ernie out still speaking in a soothing tone.

Meanwhile, Harry was flying over a village on the way back to the Sanctuary as the sky darkened and night fell. Flying was a thrilling sensation and the thought of returning home warmed his heart. Yes, Sanctuary was home. And the banshees were family, he thought as he glided down slowly. All the banshees left what they were doing to gather where he would land in a moment. Harry couldn't help the serene smile on his face as he saw the anxious looks on the banshees' faces.

_I told you I would be fine. _ He reassured the girls. They were gathered around him, each one coming forward to touch him, shoulder to elbow. This was no salute however. Harry would have none of that hero-worship since he became familiar with them. Instead it was a loving gesture of the closeness they shared. And a sign of how truly worried the banshees had been because their banshai had left on his own to spend the day among humans. It was as if they were trying to reassure themselves through the touch that he was really there. Harry was touched by their concern. These strong and proud women who were fierce and fearless to the rest of the world showed their gentleness and vulnerability to him. It was a sign of their deep trust and faith in him. And he wouldn't let them down, he thought to himself.

A deep-throated growl was all the warning before the tigercats launched themselves at him. Harry almost lost his balance as the twins tried to show him how pleased they were that he had returned. Although Siyaa almost bit him which was of course his way of showing that he was still upset at Harry for ordering the two of them to stay behind while he went to Hogwarts.

_Toufaan, why do you return so late?_ Kaela asked him as she glided down towards him. The other banshees cleared a path for their leader showing their respect.

Harry tried to look apologetic but he couldn't stop the serene smile forming on his lips. He was home. No longer the famous Harry Potter but the banshai of Almaaws. Okay, so he was still famous, being the only banshai in this part of the world, maybe the only banshai in existence. But he was not alone. Here, he was surrounded by his fellow Almaaws. Here, he was Toufaan.

He had gotten his banshai name three days after arriving at the Sanctuary. The ritual had been fairly simple, every banshee would be given a new name when entering a colony. It signaled the end of the old life and the beginning of a new one. Each colony had a Sejaa book, the book of tales. It contained the colony's history, magical secrets, fighting and defense tactics as well as a Poem. This poem summarized the whole history and all the famous banshees who had lived in the colony. It was very long and full of the famous names as well as descriptions of nature and the wind. The name of the new banshee would be picked from the Poem.

_I am sorry. I forgot how long the journey back was going to be. I will leave earlier tomorrow._ Harry replied in a soothing voice, touching her from shoulder to elbow, a gesture of reassurance.

_No, you will not for you are not returning to the place of humans. Banshai, we cannot risk it. It is too dangerous. The humans feel nothing but hate and distrust for our kind. You will not be welcome among them._

_Kaela, I must. It is the only way. I must find out all about this curse. They must have the answers somewhere in the books._

_No, Toufaan. It is not worth the risk. You are dear to us, we could not bear to loose you. Come! Come see what a day of your absence does to the Almaaws_ Kaela dragged him towards two young banshees at the fringe of the gathering.

_These two were to skin the bark off the Uli stems. Look, they were so distracted that they both hurt themselves with the long blades. Their arms will not heal for a week at least. Come! See how little fish the divers have caught today. Two of them flew north to fish near the island and almost lost their way. They arrived only moments before you. Everyone was subdued and distracted the whole day at the Sanctuary. _

Harry was astounded. He knew he was important to the colony but he had never imagined they would worry so much about him. The distance between Sanctuary and Hogwarts cut off the mind link between him and the banshees.

_You cannot return to the humans. Surely there is another way to find out more about the curse. Who knows more about the curse than the banshees? We will send messengers to the other colonies. We will request them to lend us their Sejaa so you may study them. If they are unwilling we can visit their colony everyday so that you can read their Sejaa. Surely you will find the clue to the curse in one of the Sejaa_ Kaela tried to persuade him.

Harry shook his head regretfully.

_Kaela, don't you see? That is what every banshai before me did. They tried to find clues in the Sejaa. And they failed. I believe the answer to the curse is somewhere else. And I will find the answer in the books at Hogwarts. Or at the very least I will know where to look for the answer. I must return there, Kaela_ Harry said gently.

Kaela stared hard at him. He stared back letting her know he would not give in just like he hadn't given in all of last week until Kaela had finally relented and let him return to Hogwarts. She sighed.

_Alright, if you feel you must return I will not forbid it. But tomorrow you will take Geya and Donaaz with you. Or you will not go._ she added when she saw he was about to protest.

Harry sighed and nodded in defeat.

_Now, come. It is time for our meal. _

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A/N: Almaaws is both singular and plural. Dialogues in italics were mind speech between the banshees.

I'M BAAAACK. Extremely sorry for the looong wait. Semester is over and with almost a month of holidays ahead, my fanfics will be my main focus. So if you don't see an update every three days, be sure to scold me in an e-mail.

Once again, this isn't a slash fic. Malfoy being a veela plays a very small part in Seventh Year and the rest of Malfoy's story would most probably lead to a separate fic once this one is over. The plot for that is not at all developed yet.

To answer some questions, this fic's original title was 'The Reluctant Playboy' (which is now a separate fic), pairing will remain a mystery until the end while there will be some characters of romantic interest appearing as early as next chapter (of course all that'll happen in the Reluctant Playboy, not in this fic).


End file.
